A Fighter Pilot In Training Pants
by redjagglerock
Summary: Part 3 of Out of the Frying Pan and Into to the Toilet Series. Harm works on training his three year old son. This one will be multi-chapter. Chapters 13 & 14 Adult only. ON HIATUS.
1. Chapter 1: Aim For the Bowl not the Barn

Fighter Pilot in Training Pants

Part 3 of Out of the Frying Pan and Into the Toilet Series

* * *

_A/N 1:_ _A sequel to Deep Deep Water, How To Train Your Mini Marine, and James and the Giant Whoops. While this story can stand by itself, you might be a little lost without reading its predecessors._

_A/N 2: Contrary to my son's assumptions, only parts of this story were based on trying to train him!_

* * *

Harm is flabbergasted by the fact that both of his children can speak three languages by the time they are three years old, yet they can't seem to master the concept of using the "big potty". Mac figured that since she and Harm were fluent in international law, her children should be fluent in several languages. It would be easy to teach them, since she was fluent in several herself. She rationalized that she was solidifying their future worth regardless of what country we were at war with in later years.

He thought that training Trisha was hard, but he was at wits end trying to train Matthew! Mac was pregnant again so once again potty training fell to dad. He was really going to have to work on his schedule of impregnating Mac! As if! There was no planning of any kind involved. There was a never a time that they took preventative measures to stop anything. With as often as they went at it, he was surprised they didn't have half a football team living under the roof already. He just couldn't seem to keep his hands off of her, and she didn't seem to mind. They would be meeting with the doctor soon to have her first ultrasound, and she seemed to be packing on more weight than she had with either Trisha or Matthew. She claimed it was just because she was older now and her metabolism was slowing down, but Harm was wondering if there was another reason for it. He vaguely remembered being told once upon a time that women required more body fat than men. He had almost gotten smacked by Jordan for his retort, so he resisted asking Mac if her weight gain was being sponsored by Hostess Twinkies, thinking she probably wouldn't find it funny either. And Mac can be a lot meaner than Jordie ever was. Even if he managed to avoid being physically assaulted by his wife, she would not so politely remind him that he was the one to blame for her weight gain anyway. Best to just avoid that whole conversation altogether.

Firstly, Matthew had a habit of trying to open their door in the middle of the night to announce that he had to go potty. If the door was unlocked, he would open it and flip the overhead light on, thus waking him and Mac up as well. If the room was locked, he would knock repeatedly until one of them came up and acknowledged his presence. He had experienced more than one accident directly outside their bedroom. This usually happened when either Harm or Mac was scrambling to put some clothes on before opening the door. Secondly, the poor boy had no aim whatsoever. For the son of a fighter pilot, this was highly disconcerting. Matthew would go into the bathroom and stand in front of the vanity cupboard with his sleeper unzipped and his "willy" out, ready to fire. Either Harm or Mac would have to slide him over to where the toilet was, and sometimes it was too late as Matthew was already mid-stream. Even if you got him in front of the toilet, he still hit the wall, the floor, and anything else but the inside of the toilet. It also didn't help that Matthew was growing like a weed, so his point of reference kept changing. He had definitely inherited his father's genes; he was going to be a very tall man when he got older.

Harm decides to read up on some ingenious techniques to see if he can aid Matthew along. He also considers his flight training experience to see if any of the strategic military approaches can be put to use. He might consider applying fluid dynamics, but he highly doubts that Matthew can grasp the concept at age 3. He just knows that he better figure out a solution quick before he ends up with less hair than his former commanding officer, Admiral Chegwidden.

General Cresswell has done some restructuring at JAG and Harm is now the Assistant Judge Advocate General. His new position focuses more on him training the younger attorneys. Several will rotate in for a few months just to attend the training session he has developed in relation to rules of engagement, and to observe how some of the higher profile cases are handled at the headquarters level. Unfortunately, his job also involves him being the investigator on particularly complex cases. While he still loves investigating, with a lovely wife and two children at home now, he prefers to be with them. Thankfully, Bud is still at HQ, and pretty much Harm's right-hand man. He will consult his guru for some advice on training Matthew since Bud has successfully trained two boys already.

It is a particularly slow morning when Harm and Bud are in the conference room working on budgets. Harm decides that now is as good a time as any to ask him for some suggestions. "Hey Bud, do you happen to have any pointers that might assist me in getting Matthew potty trained?"

Bud smiles as the former top gun pilot turned family man and suggests using cereal as a target. "Just throw a few Cheerios or Fruit Loops in the bowl and tell him to aim for the little hole in the middle."

Harm ponders this approach, but considering how bad Matthew's aim is, he thinks he might have to start with larger targets. He chuckles as he tells Bud, "I'm not sure that Matthew is ready for precision strike attacks just yet. However, that does give me an idea of where to start. Would you mind proofing the last section of the comments under the facilities requirements? I'm going to let the General know that I'm securing early, and going to grab Matthew from daycare so that we can get started!"

Bud chuckles at Harm's instant enthusiasm. As Harm is walking away, Bud calls out, "Don't forget to let Mac know that you are leaving early too."

Harm has the good sense to look ashamed. "Good idea. I don't think the little woman would be too happy if I forgot to mention that to her. Thanks, Bud."

Bud shakes his head at his one-time mentor, "Um, Sir?"

Harm looks back, "Yeah, Bud?"

Trying to be as tactful as possible Bud mentions, "Just a thought, but you might want to leave out the little woman part when you tell her. I don't want to have to call an ambulance when you piss off a pregnant Marine."


	2. Chapter 2: Enter the Little Witch

Harm gives Bud a manly thump on the shoulder as he leaves the conference room, "Good advice."

Harm easily obtains the General's permission, and proceeds up the stairs to where Mac's office is to let her know that he is leaving early, and that he will pick Matthew up from daycare, and Trisha up from school. This way she can stay later if she wants to. He gets halfway up the flight of stairs before he remembers that she is in court today. He runs back down, and walks towards the courtrooms. He silently slips into the back of Courtroom B, and quietly slides into a pew in the back row, not wanting to interrupt the proceedings. His Marine tends to get a little irate when her courtroom is disrupted in the middle of a trial. He can wait until she thinks it is an appropriate time to take a break.

Mac looks in his direction, and though her face shows no apparent change, her eyes give a twinkle showing her happiness in him being there. They also show a hint of a question wondering why he is there. When Lt. Tiner finishes questioning the witness, she bangs her gavel calling, "Twenty-minute recess."

Mac tilts her head at Harm, indicating that he should meet her in chambers. As he is walking towards the bench, just before he reaches the defense table, he overhears Lt. England say something derogatory to her client regarding the amount of recesses the Colonel has taken today. Lt. England reminds him very much of Lt. Singer. Unlike Lt. Singer, she is a brilliant attorney, but her attitude definitely leaves a lot to be desired. Thankfully, she reports directly to the General, and not to him. Otherwise, she would have found herself stationed at Naval Air Station Keflavik a long time ago. When he gets to the defense table, he nods to the MPs to secure the defendant before clearing his throat, loudly. Lt. England looks up at him, "Can I help you with something, Captain Rabb?"

Harm folds his arms over his chest and looks at her pointedly, "Lt. England, stand at attention."

She slides her chair back, and slowly comes to attention as requested. The only purpose this serves is to increase Harm's wrath. He was just going to ask her to accompany him to Mac's chambers so that she could repeat what she said, but now, she is going to get dressed down in front of everyone still in the courtroom. He stares hard at her for a moment before speaking. "Lieutenant, did I just hear you complain to your client that the Colonel has been taking too many breaks?"

She isn't sure what to say, as she wasn't expecting to get caught. She quietly admits, "Yes, Sir."

Harm continues, "Do you think that being disrespectful to a senior officer is appropriate behavior?"

She replies, "No, Sir."

Harm lowers his voice slightly, "And before you spout off any words about me reacting this way because she is my wife. Let me remind you that I am a senior officer as well, and I had better not hear any scuttlebutt relating to me protecting her. She is a Marine officer perfectly capable of defending herself. I would react the exact same way to disrespect of ANY senior officer. Are we clear, Lieutenant?"

She stammers, "Crystal, Sir."

Harm looks her directly in the eye as he states, "I won't mention the specifics of this to the General, but I can't guarantee that he won't hear about it. You will report to me after staff call in the morning to discuss non-judicial punishment if you are agreeable to that?"

Lt. England finally looks him directly in the eye as she replies, "Yes, Sir."

Harm can almost see her exhale in relief that she isn't receiving a formal reprimand. He replies, "I'll see you in the morning, Lieutenant, dismissed."

Lt. England grabs the papers from the defense table, and her briefcase from under it, and says, "Excuse me, sir," as she rushes past Harm, on her way out of the courtroom, thoroughly embarrassed. Thankfully, there were only a handful of folks still left in the courtroom, but there were enough witnesses to get the rumor mill going full swing. Her next stop will be the General's office. She doesn't want to have to tell him what she did, but she fears the wrath of him finding out another way much worse.

Harm is about to walk to the front of the courtroom to go through the door that leads to Mac's chambers, when he sees her leaning against the frame with her ankles crossed, and a raised eyebrow. When he reaches her, she asks, "Do you want to let me in on what that was about Sailor?"

He places his hand on her elbow, directing her down the short corridor to her chambers and says, "I will tell you, in private."

She nods, as she pushes the door open to her sanctuary, "Care to tell me why you were visiting my courtroom?"

Harm shuts and locks the door, "First things, first." He proceeds to wrap her in his arms and give her a loving kiss, not enough to spark their desires, but enough to let her know how much he truly loves her.

Mac sasses him a bit, "Thanks, Sailor, I needed that. It isn't getting you off the hook about answering my questions though."

Harm chuckles, "I didn't expect it to, but I can try again to make you forget if you would like."

Mac sighs, "It will have to wait until later tonight I am afraid. I think its going to be a long afternoon."

Harm sneaks another quick kiss before saying, "Ok, that will suffice for now. I will give you the good news first then. You can stay later tonight if you want to. I've asked the General to secure early so that I can spend a few hours practicing with Matthew this afternoon. Bud gave me a couple of ideas, and I want to try them out while things are slow in the office. I'll also pick Trisha up from school, and start dinner. That way, all you have to do when you get home is spend some time with the kids and relax. I know that we haven't told everyone yet that you are pregnant again, but we might want to let at least Admiral Morris and General Cresswell know sooner rather than later."

Mac sits down, and puts her feet up, "Harm, I think spending some one on one time with Matthew is a great idea. I'll look forward to hearing how Bud's suggestions go over when I get home tonight. I'm not sure I want to tell the General and Admiral yet. At least not until I have my first ultrasound. Why do you think it needs to be sooner?"

Harm sighs, "And that brings me to my bad news. I was dressing down Lt. England out there for remarking to her client that the trial would go much faster if 'little miss perfect colonel' didn't have to keep taking potty breaks."

Mac is on her feet in an instant, "THAT LITTLE WITCH SAID WHAT?"

Harm grabs her arms, and gives her light caresses from her shoulders to her hands, as he coaxes her back into her seat. "Power down, Marine. Stress is not good for the little one. I took care of it, and I will have a discussion with the General about her behavior. However, I will probably leave out the exact words she used."

Mac is still fuming, "I don't need you to protect me, Harm!"

Harm holds her hands, and gives them a squeeze in silent support, "Sarah, I wasn't doing it to protect you. I would have reacted the same way if she had made those comments about Bud or Tiner."

Mac cocks her eyebrow at him, "Oh, really?"

Harm starts to defend himself, "Yes, she shouldn't treat any officer.." The rest of his sentence is cut off when he realizes that Mac is laughing at him. He likes that she has loosened up a little, but isn't happy about the fact that it seems to be at his expense. "What is so funny?"

Mac attempts to answer him through her giggles, "I'm just trying to picture you defending the honor of a pregnant Bud and Tiner. Tell me, do you think they would look better in a sundress or a pantsuit?"


	3. Chapter 3: Negotiations

_A/N: With almost 250 views and less than 5 reviews, I am seriously wondering if the story is liked or not. Please take a moment to drop a line, even as a guest, and let me know what you think. Do you like it, hate it, do I need a group of Force Recon Marines?_

* * *

Harm rolls his eyes at his wife. As he reaches over to tickle her, he says, "I think I prefer the overalls personally."

Mac, still giggling, both from her own comment, and the fact that he is attempting to tickle her replies, "Harm, the overalls are a practicality, not a fashion statement. They have little snaps on the side that allow you to adjust the waistline as you get bigger. They are beyond comfortable. Although I'm not sure that Bud or Tiner would truly appreciate how wonderful they feel. The only time that guys seem to wear overalls is doing some form of construction project."

Harm continues on his mission, even as she repeatedly tries to swat his hand away, "I have never worn overalls doing any construction project! It's not my fault you look adorable in them. Your hair is long enough now, we could even put you in pigtails."

Mac scoffs, "Harm! I am too old for pigtails!"

Harm gives her a full flyboy smile, "Nah, it would be the perfect picture. Set in early fall, right as the leaves are turning colors. You, and my Mini-Mac, dressed in matching overalls and pig tails, jumping into a pile of leaves."

Mac smiles, "Hmm, I'll think about it. We'll see how big my belly is at that point."

Harm stands up and gives her a loving kiss as he affectionately rubs her belly. "You look absolutely beautiful whether you are a size four, or nine months pregnant."

Mac reaches her hand up to cup his cheek, "You have a biased opinion, counselor."

Harm takes her hand and gives the inside of her wrist a small kiss, delighted in the shiver that runs through her body at his action. "Yes, I do, and it will never change. I love you, Sarah."

Mac steals one more kiss, "I love you too, Harm. Now go get our little boy and have some quality daddy and son time. I need to get back in the courtroom."

Harm chuckles, "Ok, don't be too hard on Lt. England this afternoon."

Mac scowls, "I make no promises! I expect a full progress report on your progress with Matthew later tonight."

Harm turn to walk away, "Aye, Aye Ma'am!"

Mac swats his six, "Go sailor!"

Harm leaves his wife's chambers with a smile on his face. He really doesn't want to lose his good mood by stopping by the General's office to inform him of the incident with Lt. England, but duty calls. Once he is sure that Mac has reconvened court, he heads to the General's office. Petty Office Quinn, the General's yeoman, informs Captain Rabb that the General had been summoned to the SecNav's office. Harm leaves a message asking the General to call him at his earliest convenience. PO Quinn says, "Got it, Sir. Does this have anything to with Lt. England, Sir?"

Harm raises his eyebrow, amazed at how quickly scuttlebutt travels at JAG. However, Tiner was in the room, so that explains part of it, "Why would you ask that, Petty Officer?"

PO Quinn stumbles, "I'm sorry, Sir. That was out of line. I just heard what happened in the courtroom, and Lt. England had come to me requesting an immediate audience with the General. I had to leave to get a cup of coffee. I couldn't hear the words being exchanged, but the General was not a happy camper."

Harm chuckles, "Petty Officer, if you happen to hear any more rumors, please do what you can to squash them. I don't want to have to dress down anyone else for adding more fuel to the fire, or for disrespecting a senior officer."

PO Quinn says, "Understood, Sir. Enjoy your afternoon with your son."

Harm smiles, "Thank you, I will." As he walks away, he silently wonders if he will be on the receiving end of the General's wrath as well. He really should have handled the situation in private, but he was pissed! Oh well, it wouldn't be the first time he has ticked off his Commanding Officer, and he is sure it probably won't be the last either. Shaking those thoughts off, he exits the bullpen and heads to the elevator for what will hopefully be a fruitful and fun afternoon.

Harm stops by the gas station to fill up the tank of his SUV, and picks up a couple of different bags of supplies on his way to retrieve Matthew from daycare.

When he arrives at the child care center, he isn't even standing at the door a full minute before a whirlwind has made its way across the room and attached himself to Harm's leg. "Early, Daddy?"

Harm reaches down and hoists his son up onto his hip, giving him a little tickle. "Yes, Matthew, I'm picking you up early. I figured you and I could have some one on one guy time before we have to pick your sister up from school."

Matthew gives a little giggle, "Mama?"

Harm replies, "Your mom is still at work. It will just be you and me for the afternoon."

Matthew gives a little grin as he looks up at his dad, "Ice Cream?"

Harm gives Matt's tummy another little tickle as he asks animatedly, "Ice Cream? Hmm. I'll make you a deal, you work on going big boy potty with me this afternoon, and I will take you and Trisha for ice cream when we pick her up. I'll leave a message for your mom too, that way we can see if she is able to meet us." This boy may be a spitting image of his father, but his appetite is all his mom. Harm only hopes that he inherited her metabolism as well.

Matthew frowns, "No potty."

Harm gives Matt a stern look, "No potty, no ice cream. I promise I will try to make it fun."

Matthew pouts for a moment, and then quietly says, "Ok, I try."

Harm smiles, "That's my boy. Let's get going. The quicker we accomplish what we need to, the sooner we can get ice cream."


	4. Chapter 4: Corruption

_A/N: I wasn't trying to guilt anyone into reviewing, but I wish to express a great big "Thank You" to all those who took the time to review. Your thoughts definitely give this author inspiration! To the guest reviewer who asked for 2 chapters quickly, I aim to please. However, real life and responsibilities have a way of dictating writing speed, and how often the muse visits! I will get out more as soon as I can._

* * *

Harm takes Matthew outside and gets him properly secured in his car seat before heading around to the driver's seat and buckling himself in.

As Harm starts up the car, Matthew asks, "Wheels, Daddy?"

Harm groans, "Do we have to?"

Matt giggles, "Yes, please."

Harm curses the day that Mac ever bought the children's music CD for long car rides. Even though it has a variety of songs on it, there is only one that Matthew ever wants to listen to. Harm silently wonders if maybe it is time to bring out his guitar, and see if he can teach Matthew to like some of the great classics instead. He puts the car back in park, as he rummages through the CD's in the organizer attached to the visor. Picking out the one he needs, he puts it into the player, selects play, and puts the car in reverse. As Harm is pulling out of the driveway, you can hear the CD playing, and Matthew singing at the top of his lungs, "The wheels on the bus go round and round."

Thankfully, traffic on the way home is light. Harm has only been subjected to that dreadful song through three renditions. He surmised it could be worse, there could be a Barney song on the CD. Before Trisha was ever born, knowing how his wife is an amateur paleontologist, Harm explicitly told Mac that HIS children would not be subjected to ANYTHING resembling or dealing with that dreaded purple dinosaur! She was welcome to introduce them to any and all other dinosaurs as she wished.

As he pulls into the garage, he grabs his briefcase and cover off of the passenger seat before heading to the back to retrieve his purchases, and his singing little boy. He carries Matthew on his hip, and juggles everything else in his other hand. Unfortunately, as he reaches the door leading into the house, he realizes he is one hand short to unlock it. Matt looks up at his dad as they stand at the door leading into the house, "Keys?"

Harm smiles, "Yes, Matt, I know. Give me a just a second, they are in my pocket."

He sets Matthew down, and retrieves the keychain, with an F-14 attached to it, from his pocket.

Matthew jumps up and down, "Me do it, Daddy. I help."

Harm lifts him back up onto his hip, and hands him the keys, "Ok, you be a big boy and help Daddy open the door, and then we are going to continue being a big boy, and use the potty."

Matthew smiles, "Ice Cream."

Harm laughs at his silly little boy. Sometimes he is all his mother. One track mind when it involves food, especially any type of dessert! "We will get Ice Cream in a few hours. After potty, after lunch, after your nap, and after we get Trisha from school."

Matthew pushes the door open, and starting running towards the bathroom, pulling his pants down as he goes. Harm yells, "Wait for me, Matthew!" Thankfully, Harm has much longer legs, and catches up to his little streaker in three strides.

Grabbing his butt naked child around the middle, Harm retrieves Matt's pull up and shorts in the other hand. He asks him, "Do you have to go that bad?"

Matt smiles, "No, I good."

Harm smiles, "Then what is the rush?"

Matt pouts, "No potty, no Ice Cream."

Harm tousles his son's hair as he tells him, "As long as we practice going potty, we will get ice cream, LATER. Give Daddy a few minutes to set everything up, and we will try together."

Matt laughs, "Ok Daddy, you silly."

Harm enters the bathroom, and sets the bag from the gas station on the counter. He proceeds to hang Matthew upside down and starts tickling him, "I'm the silly one, eh?"

Matthew squirms around, "Me silly too."

After a few moments, Harm sets him on the floor upright and says, "Yes, you are. Just sit still for a minute, and we will be ready to go."

Harm locks the bathroom door, one of the requirements of the potty training "rules", and stands off to one side of the toilet. He tells Matthew to stand on the other side so that he is facing him, so that he can watch how it's done. Harm tosses a few thin pretzel twists, each with three large rings, into the bowl, and tells Matthew, "Look at how Daddy does it first, and then we can both try." His only concern is that Matt won't wait for Harm to show him first. With their current positioning, if Matthew tries also, Harm can only pray that his son's aim is downward so he won't get too wet.

Harm provides a demonstration where he lines up with the target, and shoots through one of the rings. Matt cheers, clapping his hands together, and says "My turn?"

Harm has Matthew get up on the step stool to give it a go. Harm takes a quick look at the planned trajectory, and slightly grabs his son's shoulders to move him a little to the left. Once Harm feels that he has Matthew properly aligned, both vertically and horizontally, Harm stands a little to the side, with his stick ready to fire also, so that they can do this simultaneously. He says, "Ready? On the count of three... Target Acquired, Take Aim, Target Hit!" Matthew aims, and nails it right in the center of two of the rings. His dad gets everything in the ring furthest away from him.

Harm goes to high five his son, "Great job, Matthew!"

Matthew gives his dad a miniature Flyboy smile, returns the high five, and says, "Oo-rah!"

Harm nearly makes a mess on himself as he jumps back, astonished at what comes out of Matt's mouth. He regains his composure before admonishing his son, "Matthew Harmon Rabb! Naval Aviators do not say 'Oo-rah', EVER!"

Matt giggles up at his father, "Marines do!"

Harm shakes his head. 'That's it!', he thinks. He needs to start spending more time at home with the kids, and Mac needs to spend more time in the office. She is corrupting BOTH of his children!


	5. Chapter 5: Nope, No Meat on My Watch

Harm looks at Matthew and says, "You can't be a Marine if you want to fly like jets like Daddy."

Matt thinks about this for a moment, and asks, "Fly now?"

Harm questions, "You want to play airplane?"

Matthew nods his head vigorously.

Harm chuckles at his son's enthusiasm. "I will play airplane with you in a few minutes. First, we need to flush the toilet. Second, we have to put the toilet seat down. Then, we need to wash our hands. And you, little man, need to put your clothes back on. Your mother will kill me if I let you run around half dressed." Mac will also kill him if they forget to put the toilet seat back down, but Matthew doesn't need to know that little tidbit of information.

Harm reaches over to flush the toilet, and the toilet gurgles, and fills with water and pretzel pieces.

Matt looks up at his dad, "Ut oh."

Harm grimaces as he reaches for the plunger and realizes that it isn't there. "Don't worry, Matthew, Daddy knows how to fix this. We just need to take a little trip into the other bathroom to get a plunger." Grabbing his still half naked child, Harm walks to the other bathroom to retrieve the needed piece of equipment. He finds the plunger with a pink ribbon around it and wonders what the story is behind that. He has no doubt that his six-year-old Mini Mac is responsible. As he grabs the plunger, his hands end up covered in magenta glitter glue that was hiding on the other side.

Matthew looks at his dad's hand, "Pwetty."

Harm smiles at Matthew, "I really don't think pink is my color."

Matthew considers this for a moment, and asks, "Boo?"

Harm replies, "Yes, blue is definitely better than pink, but apparently, your sister doesn't seem to agree." Flashbacks of a pink flower on his face run through Harm's mind.

When they return to the restroom, Harm sets Matthew on his step stool in front of the sink, "You start washing your hands while I get the toilet to flush." Harm makes a mental note to consider the biodegradability of all future training supplies as he furiously works the plunger until the pressure releases, and the water returns to the normal level. It's a good thing that Mac isn't home or they would be adding a few new rules to the list, of that he is sure.

When he turns towards his little boy who is supposed to be washing his hands, he finds Matthew smiling at him, "Daddy in trouble."

Harm scoffs, "Daddy is not in trouble. Daddy will only be in trouble if he doesn't fix the problem, which he has." Remembering one of the cardinal rules, Harm flips the toilet seat down and walks over to the sink. "Aren't we supposed to be washing our hands, little man?"

After they have finished in the bathroom, Harm lifts Matthew over his head to play airplane on the way to Matthew's room. Once inside, Harm sets Matthew down on the floor.

Matt pouts, "More plane, Daddy!"

Harm tells him, "You need a new pull up, and need to put your shorts back on, and then I will let you soar above Daddy's shoulders on the way to the kitchen for lunch."

Harm grabs a fresh pull up and crouches down to Matt's level to help him put it, and his shorts, back on. He looks him in the eye and tells him, "Daddy is very proud of you. You were such a big boy today."

Matt smiles, "Ice cream."

Harm sighs, slightly exasperated. "Yes, I will get you a big bowl of ice cream when we pick up your sister, but for now, I think we need lunch first. What do you say to a peanut butter and jelly sandwich?"

Matthew turns his head in the negative, "loney."

Harm tries his best not to lose his appetite at the mere thought of his son eating that horrendous animal by product. Why in the world Mac buys that disgusting stuff is beyond him. And then, she even fries it, making it one thousand times worse! But it is in her standard group of food groups, including grease and dead animal. Yuck! He shakes his head at Matthew, "Nope, no baloney, not happening on my watch. You can have a grilled cheese, or peanut butter and jelly."

Matt starts to tear up and puffs his lower lip out, "Loney, please?"

Harm raises his eyebrow at his younger mirror image as he tells him, "That pout only works on your mother. I should know, I perfected it. You can have baloney when you eat lunch with her. I prefer to feed you something slightly more nutritious. Now, cheese or PBJ?"

Matt huffs, "Cheese."

Harm, finally happy to be making a little progress, inquires, "Grapes or carrots?"

Matt gives him a mischievous grin, "Chips!"

Harm shakes his head. This child must be the offspring of lawyers, as he is a shrewd negotiator. "Ok, chips, carrots, cheese, and grapes."

Matt laughs, "No, daddy. It's head, shoulders, knees, and toes."

Harm says, "Well, if you insist," and he reaches down, and proceeds to tickle Matt's head, shoulders, knees, and toes. While Matthew is still giggling, Harm places his hands under Matthew's armpits and asks, "Is this flight ready for take-off, Sir?"

Matt nods his head, "Yes Daddy, Fly!"

Harm starts making sounds like an engine revving, as he lifts Matthew high up above his head. "Stretch your wings out."

Matthew extends both his arms straight out to the side, "Giddy up, horsey."

Harm brings him back down to eye level, "Horsey? Sorry kiddo, no horses allowed on planes. At least not ones with human passengers."

Matthews laughs, "Ok, no horsey. Up!"

Harm complies, and soon they are maneuvering through the great white walls of the Rabb household.

When they reach the kitchen, Harm sets Matthew in his booster seat, ready to start preparing their lunch. With a short little salute, Harm proclaims, "Thank you for flying AIR Rabb, where each flight comes complete with a heartbreaking smile, and is accompanied by a safe landing. I hope you enjoyed your trip. Please come back and visit us again, soon."


	6. Chapter 6: Wrong Way Daddy!

Harm grabs some baby carrots out of the crisper, and sets them in a bowl in front of Matthew to snack on, while he gets the ingredients ready to make his grilled cheese. While he is in the fridge, another potential aid appears before him. Hopefully this one won't get stuck in toilet!

Matthew looks at the bowl of carrots and then up at his dad, "Chips!"

Harm gives him a pointed look, "You will get your chips with your sandwich. Eat the carrots for now, while I make your grilled cheese." It would surely be nice if one his kids had healthy eating habits. Unfortunately, both seemed to subscribe to their mother's idea of snacks first, nutrition later. If nutrition even came into the equation at all.

Matthew relents, "Ok."

Harm finishes making the grilled cheese, and cuts in into triangles. He leaves it on the counter to cool while he grabs the grapes, some plain kettle cooked chips, and the salad he prepared for his own lunch. He sets aside one of the items he prepped, until after lunch is finished. Once the rest of the items are on the plate, he sets it in front of Matthew, "Blow on it first, it's still a little warm."

Matthew looks down at his sandwich puzzled, "Daddy wrong."

Not understanding, Harm raises his eyebrow in question, "What did I do wrong? I gave you everything you asked for."

Matt picks up one of the triangles and looks up at Harm, "Mama make four."

Realization dawns on Harm that Mac must cut his sandwich into squares instead of triangles. He asks, "There should be four pieces instead of two?"

Matthew nods his head, "Yes!"

Harm grabs the knife, hoping that Matthew won't care about the shape, and cuts each triangle one more time so that he has four smaller pieces instead of the two larger ones. In the process, a little bit of cheese oozes out of the sides. Matthew sticks his finger in the escaped goo and puts it in his mouth. Harm inquires, "Better?"

Harm watches curiously as Matthew lifts one of the smaller triangular pieces up, and studies it from every angle. He purses his lips in concentration, obviously not finding what he wants. He picks up another triangle in the other hand, and repeats the scrutinization process. Then he sets both of them down on the plate and makes a square. He looks at Harm and tells him, "That way better."

Harm ruffles Matthew's hair and says, "Ok next time I will cut it into four squares. But I bet you it doesn't taste any different. Try it."

Matthew thinks about it for a moment, picks up one triangle in each hand and brings them both to his mouth at the same time. He takes a bite of each piece simultaneously at says, with his mouth still full, "Ok!"

Harm smiles at the wonder of a three-year old's deductive reasoning skills and replies, "Good, now don't talk with your mouth full. Next time I will remember to cut it the same way mama does."

Matthew appears contended with the rest of his lunch for the moment. Harm sits down next to Matthew and they enjoy a nice quiet lunch, at least until Matthew decides to see how many grapes he can fit inside of his mouth. Harm looks at him and laughs, "are you trying to be a chipmunk?"

Matthew chews vigorously until he has swallowed all of the grapes before answering, "Me Alvin."

Harm smiles, "Hmm, sometimes I think you are Theodore, but you have tendencies of acting like all three of them. You are smart like Simon, a troublemaker like Alvin, and chubby and loveable like Theodore."

Matthew repeats, "Alvin!"

Harm lifts him out of his booster seat chuckling, "Ok, Alvin, let's get washed up so that we can go potty before nap time."

While making his salad, Harm had cored an onion to use as Matthew's point of reference this time. He remembered seeing an episode of some show where they tested both onion rings and onions to see if they flushed. One passed and the other didn't. After the debacle with the pretzels, he didn't think that the peach rings candy he picked up would fare much better in the flushing department, so hopefully the onion works better.

Harm takes Matthew into the bathroom and tells him, "Ok buddy, you are on your own this time. I'm going to throw two rings of onion in there and you try and hit it in the middle of one of the rings."

Matthew yanks his shorts and pull-up down and declares, "Ready!"

Harm tosses one large and one medium sized onion circle into the toilet, "Aim, and Fire!"

Matthew lets out a steady stream straight in the center of the medium sized one. He has perfect aim, not getting a single drop outside of his intended target!

Harm opts not to give him a high five this time, instead he pats him on the back lightly, "Great job, Buddy! See, you are getting the hang of this."

Matthews rubs his fists in his eyes, obviously tired, "Me good boy."

Harm smiles, "Yes you are, and apparently a tired one too. Let's wash your hands and lay down for a few. After you wake up, we will pick up Trisha from school, and go have the treat I promised you."

Matt steps over to the sink as Harm turns the water on. After Matt has finished washing his hands, he lifts his arms up to Harm, indicating he would like to be picked up. As soon as Harm has him in his embrace, Matthew immediately snuggles into the crook of his neck. Harm lovingly runs his hand down Matthew's back in soothing motions as he carries him to his bedroom. He places him down in the bed and gives him a kiss on his forehead, "Sweet dreams, Buddy."

Matthews yawns, "Night Daddy."

Harm walks out of the room, leaving the door ajar just a slight bit, and heads back down to the kitchen to make a couple of phone calls.


	7. Ch 7:Planes Don't Have Pilot Pit Stops

_A/N: I really wish some of these aids had existed when I was training my own son. The incident on the bus is based on a true story, rotten kid!_

Harm settles down at the kitchen table and dials the often-used number of a florist. It will be nice to use this number for no reason other than to say "I love you, and I am thinking about you." Normally when he calls, it's because he is in the doghouse for something. Hopefully, it will cheer his marine up a little bit

The florist answers the phone on the second ring, "Hello again, Mr. Rabb. What kind of trouble can I help you get out of today?"

Chuckling, Harm responds, "Actually, Maribell, I'm not in trouble this time."

Maribell smiles on the other end, "Well, that is different. Special Occasion today?"

Harm remarks, "No. I just think the Mrs. is a little down today, and could use a little pick me up."

Maribell inquires, "What did you have in mind? A spring bouquet, some wildflowers perhaps, or the standard dozen red roses?"

Harm ponders her suggestion for a moment, thinking while a spring mix might be a little unexpected, it is not quite what he is looking for. He answers, "You wouldn't happen to have lavender roses, would you?"

Maribell says, "As a matter of fact we do. How many would you like?"

Harm replies, "Let's go with the standard dozen plus two."

Maribell chuckles, "Any significance for the number fourteen?"

Harm laughs, "No. Just a dozen from me, and one from each of the kids."

The florist definitely enjoys taking orders for this man. She's only met him in person a handful of times, and a handsome devil he is. But she loves how devoted he is to his wife. "I take it these are being delivered to the usual address at JAG HQ?"

Harm replies, "Yes. Please have the card say: Just wanted to let you know that we were thinking of you. Your loving children, and devoted husband would like to invite you for ice cream at the Dairy Queen at 16:30 if you can make it. Love, Harm, Trisha, and Matthew."

Maribell jots all the info down as requested. "I got it Mr. Rabb. I'll have these delivered to your wife as soon as my driver is back."

Harm tells her, "Thanks, Maribell, you're the best!"

After he hangs up with to the florist, ensuring delivery for early afternoon, he decides to check his cell phone to make sure the General hasn't called him back yet. He starts rummaging around in his coat pockets for the phone, laughing at himself when he finds it still attached to his hip. He thinks to himself, 'I didn't realize I was so distracted this afternoon. Apparently, I was, since I still have my uniform on too. Well, at least I didn't miss his call.' Harm heads upstairs to change into a well worn pair of jeans, and a black polo shirt. He checks on Matthew, who is sleeping soundly, and heads back down to the kitchen for his next call.

* * *

Harm jovially states "Hi! Mom" when Trish picks up on the other end.

Trish is surprised to be hearing from him in the middle of the afternoon. She begins rapidly firing questions. "Harmon, is everything ok? Are Mac and the kids alright? Why aren't you at work?"

Harm sighs, "Relax, Mom, everyone is fine. Mac is still at work, Trisha is at school, and Matthew is upstairs taking a nap. I secured early today to spend some one on one time with Matthew to work on potty training. I figured I might have a little better luck if it was just us guys, and I had a few new techniques that I wanted to try with him. They seemed to help a little, but I was calling to see if you had any additional suggestions."

Trish is laughing so hard that she has tears coming out of her eyes. It's quite amusing when your child gets to deal with the same hazards they exhibited as a child when raising their own children. "Let me guess, the boy can't aim…."

Even though she can't see it, Harm is slack jawed. "How did you know that?"

Trish replies, "Harm, that boy looks just like you! Chances are, he inherited most of your genes, and if he is growing half as fast as you did at that age, I wish you the best of luck! Your grandmother was no help either. Your father was deployed at the time I was attempting to train you, and you and I were spending a couple of weeks at her farm in Pennsylvania. You just peed in the hay at her house. She said the animals wouldn't care, as it probably smelled better than they did. One time you decided to pee in the mud by the pigs, and then you slipped and fell in it. I brought you into your grandmother, and told her that since she allowed you to go wherever you wanted, that she could clean you up. Needless to say, she was not happy. I think you got rules after that about where you were allowed to go."

Harm teases, "I'm a guy mom, we can go just about anywhere."

Trish replies, "Don't I know it. I think you were about ten at the time, and you were on a field trip to the zoo with your class. Apparently, they wouldn't make any stops between the zoo and the school for potty breaks, and you really had to go. So, you went to the back of the bus with your empty soda bottle, and peed in it. I tried very hard not to bust out laughing when the principal called to tell me that one, but I wasn't successful."

Harm laughs, "I actually remember that incident. My teacher was mad. Both at me for doing it, and at the rest of the class for laughing about it. What can I say? When Mother Nature calls, you have to answer. Just hope you aren't strapped inside the cockpit of an F-14 when that happens. You can't exactly pull the plane off to the side of the road to take a wizz."

Trish tries to regain her composure after that mental picture flashes through her mind. "I imagine that would be quite difficult. So, what have you tried to use with Matt?

Harm remarks, "Pretzel rings, but they got stuck, and I had to find a plunger. And then I tried onions, but I'm not sure that was the best plan either. Bud suggested cereal, but Matthew isn't ready for that small of a target just yet. I'm looking for something that isn't food related, and that is easily flushable."

Trish thinks for a moment before answering, "My receptionist used something she ordered off the internet when she was training her boys. Hang on a sec and I'll ask her." Trish sets the phone to speaker and calls out, "Hey Mel, what did you order off line to help when you were toilet training your boys?"

Mel walks into the gallery owner's office, "They are called Tinkle Targets. They're removable stickers that you place on the bottom of the toilet that have rings, and a bull's eye in the middle. They work really well if your son is having trouble aiming."

Trish smiles, "Thank you Mel, I'll be out when I'm done talking to my son." As Mel is leaving, she tells Harm, "There ya go, you should try those."

Harm sighs, "Ok, but I'm going to have to go find some rubber gloves. I know that we keep the toilets fairly clean, but I'm still not sticking my hand on the bottom of it."

Trish laughs, "Have Mac do it."

Harm shrieks, "Mom! Mac is not going to put her hand in there either."

Trish chuckles, "Harm, the woman you married isn't a dainty little thing afraid to get her hands dirty. She's a Marine. She'll do it."

Harm teases, "Care to place a wager on that?"

His mom easily replies, "Sure, I know I will win."

Harm inwardly smiles, as he has pertinent information his mom is missing. Normally, Mac wouldn't hesitate, but with morning sickness present, the odds in Harm's favor drastically increase. His cell phone starts buzzing before he can lay out the particulars. "Hey Mom, I'm going to have to call you back, that might be the General."

Trish says, "Ok honey, let me know the terms later. Give my love to Mac and the kids. I love you, Bye"

Harm rushes, "Will do. Love you too. Bye, mom"


	8. Chapter 8: Oops Avoided

Meanwhile, back at JAG, Mac is having a hard time staying focused on her case. It's not a boring case, per se, her mind is just preoccupied. She is still annoyed at Lt. England, and she wonders how her boys are doing with their little training session. Speaking of potty time, she needs to go again herself. Hopefully, a forty-five-minute-long session is sufficient enough in the Lieutenant's mind for a break. If not, she will be receiving her second dressing down in less than a day, or third, depending on if the General has gotten ahold of her yet or not. She silently chuckles at that thought. Mac waits for Lt. Tiner to finish cross-examining the current witness before calling for a fifteen-minute recess.

After Mac stops by the bathroom, she heads to her chambers to check her messages. Her yeoman informs her that she had a delivery while court was in session. Mac opens her door, and immediately smiles at the beautiful arrangement sitting on her desk, the stack of messages in her hand instantly forgotten. Her Flyboy can be so sweet sometimes.

Mac pulls her cellphone from her drawer, and sends him a quick text, "Harm, thank you for the flowers, they are absolutely beautiful! You always know just what I need, and when I need it. Some days I don't know how I ever survived without you. It sounds like you and Matt have had a productive afternoon. Although I hope you didn't bribe him with ice cream. I wish I could join you, and the kids for ice cream, but I will be letting court run late to make up for my 'potty breaks.' Give the kids my love, and I will see you at home around 1900 for dinner. I love you."

Harm takes a deep breath before pulling his cell from his hip, hoping that the General isn't going to read him the riot act for his performance with Lt. England. When he looks at the phone, he is pleasantly surprised to find a text from Mac, instead of the phone call from General Cresswell. A smile graces his handsome features. He sends her a quick reply, "I'm glad I could brighten your afternoon a little. Matthew and I definitely made some progress, and had fun while doing it, Mom had some ideas too, but I will explain later. Me? Bribe the kids? I'm hurt, Marine!"

Mac raises her eyebrow on the other end, chuckling as she types, "I look forward to hearing all about it. And yes, Harm, they both have you wrapped around your little finger, and you know it!"

Harm quickly responds, "And you don't melt when Matthew smiles at you?"

Mac pauses a moment, not wanting to admit how right he is, "I have to get back to court before they send out a search party. It wouldn't look good for the judge to be late back from a break that she called."

Harm laughs out right at her complete non response. "Touché! Have fun in court and we will see you tonight at dinner. I love you, too."

Harm heads back upstairs to check on Matthew. They will need to leave in about thirty minutes to pick up Trisha from school. Just as Harm reaches Matthews' doorway, his little boy is sitting up in his bed, wiping away the sleepy bugs from his eyes. "You ready to get up, little man?"

Matthew drops his fists from his face, and starts to lay back down, "Five more minutes?"

Harm chuckles, Matthew is definitely his son. It's a good thing he married a human alarm clock. He has gotten much better about being on time for things since he married Mac. He just isn't sure if it's her internal clock that gets him moving, or the threat of bodily injury. "Nah, we need to get moving soon so we can get your sister, and go to Dairy Queen."

Matthew jumps out of bed at that, "Ice Cream!" Ok, Matthew is definitely Mac's son too! Her brains! Or at least her stomach!

Harm rolls his eyes, "Yes, ice cream with me, and your sister."

Matt asks, "Mama too?"

Harm frowns, "No, sorry, mom has to work late. We will see her at dinner. But you can pick out something extra special for her, and we will bring it home. Let's go potty so that we can get ready to go."

Matt smiles, "Ok. You come too."

Harm grabs a pull up out of the drawer and takes Matthew's hand to go to the bathroom. Matthew stands in front of the toilet, and Harm steps back, not wanting to risk getting wet. Matt looks at the empty toilet and looks back up at his dad, "Rings?"

Harm says, "Oops, be right back."

Harm rushes back to the kitchen, hoping his son can hold it that long, and that he won't return to a mess in the bathroom.

He grabs a few onion pieces that he cored earlier, and sprints back up the stairs two at a time. He gets to the bathroom, and Matthew has just started going, surprisingly most of it is getting in the bowl. "Sorry, Daddy."

Harm stands in the doorway, watching, and smiles, "Don't be, Matt. You are doing just fine. Are you sure you want the rings?"

Matthews nods his head, so Harm tosses one in. Matt adjusts his body slightly, and gets the rest through the middle of the ring. When Matthew is finished, Harm is surprised to find only a few drops on the top of the toilet seat. "You did a great job, Matt. Much better aim."

Matthew giggles, "I sunk the ship!"

Harm says, "Yes you did. Now let's get your pull up changed, wash our hands, and go pick up your sister." Harm reaches over to help Matt get out of his current pull-up, and finds that it is completely dry. This is the first time he has woken from a nap without an accident. Harm wraps his son in a big hug, "You're dry."

Matthews mouth forms a great big "O." He claps his hands, "I'm a big boy!"

Harm tries to keep a tear from escaping from his eye, he is so proud of his son! "Ok, big boy, wash your hands, and let's go get your sister."

Matthew happily hops up on the step stool to wash his hands. When he is done, they head out of the bathroom, and Harm immediately stops three steps out. He doubles back, and drops the toilet seat. He comes out of the bathroom shaking his head. Matt says, "What's wrong, Daddy?"

Harm scoops his little boy up in his arms and tickles him, "WE forgot to put the seat down. I didn't want US to get in trouble with mom."

Matthew giggles, "Oops."

Harm thinks to himself, 'Oh you have no idea how big an OOPS that would have been!' Aloud he says, "Oops indeed! Let's fly the friendly skies," as he hoists Matt above his head in airplane mode once again.


	9. Chapter 9: Ooh Ah Oochi La

Harm gets Matthew strapped into his car seat, and climbs in the driver's side to head on their way to Trisha's elementary school. They get two blocks away from home before Matthew requests, "Wheels?"

Harm tells him, "No more wheels! I'm wheeled out." He is definitely not listening to any more of "The Wheels on the Bus go Round and Round" today. If he had his way, he might toss the CD out the window, and accidently run it over.

Matthew pouts for a moment, and then requests, "Ooh Ah Oochi La?"

Harm says, "Hang on a sec, and I'll see if it's in here." When Harm gets to a stop sign, he looks through the visor until he finds the Savage Garden CD, and pops it in. He flips through the tracks until "I Want You" comes through the speakers.

Harm smiles as Matthew starts singing "ooh ah oochi la" happily from the back seat. Harm has tried, several times, unsuccessfully, to teach him the real lyrics to the chorus of the song, but Matt likes his version much better.

Harm parks the SUV in the school parking lot, unhooks Matthew, and goes into the office to sign Trisha out. The school day is almost over, but he is there fifteen minutes before the final bell rings, in an effort to beat out the school bus traffic. He has just finished showing his ID, so that his daughter can be released to him, when Harriet walks in. She smiles, "Fancy meeting you here, Sir."

Harm rolls his eyes, "It's Harm, Harriet! What are you doing here?"

Harriet chuckles, "Aye, Aye, Si…Harm. I thought I would get AJ a little early, and take him for a treat, as a reward for getting such a high grade on his math test last week. I'm just not sure where we are going yet. Since work is relatively quiet, and you left my husband with mundane busy work to do, I deemed today would be the perfect time to take advantage of some with my eldest son, away from his younger siblings." She hands her ID to the office administrator as well.

Harm gestures to the munchkin on his hip, "We really should communicate better, as I owe this one an ice cream treat for being such a big boy today! I could have grabbed AJ while I was here picking up Trisha. Why don't you and AJ join the three of us at Dairy Queen? My treat. Unless, of course you want some alone time with AJ. I don't want to intrude on your plans."

Harriet replies, "That's very kind of you, Sir. Bud mentioned you asked for a few pointers, and were going to be working on them with Matt this afternoon. It won't be long before I am training the twins." She quietly adds, "I might be coming to you for some advice on tips for training a girl, since this will be my first time."

Harm gives her his customary flyboy grin, "Yes, and his ideas gave me a few of my own, and we were very successful. I'll share them with you later, after I tell my wife! Just between us, I think Trisha was easier, even though it was my first time trying to train anyone. I really couldn't apply most of my lessons learned with her to this little guy."

Harriet inquires, "Well at least little girls don't spout fountains the minute cold air reaches them!"

Harm chuckles at that. "Very true." Matthew definitely didn't have any problems with his aim when he was a newborn. Nine times out ten when Harm tried to change his diaper, Matthew nailed him straight in the shirt.

Harriet asks, "I take it that the Colonel is working late?"

Harm nods.

Harriet says, "Ok, Bud is picking up the twins and Jimmy, that way AJ and I could have a little time to ourselves. We would be happy to meet you there."

The school attendant walks in, with both AJ and Trisha in tow. They look at each other, both surprised to see their parents. AJ cautiously asks, "Is everything ok?"

Harm ruffles his godson's hair, "Just fine, Sport." Harm reduces altitude to their level, and whispers conspiratorially, "We're all going for ice cream."

Trisha can't contain her excitement, and wraps her arms around her daddy's neck so quickly that she almost knocks her brother out of his arms.

Harm lightly admonishes, "Trisha! Please be more careful."

She steps back, "Sorry, Daddy. Sorry, Matt."

Harm rises back up to his full height, and offers her his hand, "That's better, let's get going, before I end up behind a long line of yellow submarines."

AJ says, "Uncle Harm, they are school buses, not submarines."

Harm says, "Same thing, both of them are full of hooligans."

The children give each other a questioning look, as Harriet clarifies, "He means troublemakers."

Trisha asks, "But if we are in trouble, why are we getting ice cream?"

Harriet laughs, "Not you two, your dad just meant a bunch of kids together, or a bunch of Navy men together under water, generally leads to trouble."

Trisha still isn't quite sure what her dad meant, but she isn't going to look a gift horse in the mouth, when it means she is getting ice cream. It's very rare that her father lets them indulge in sugary treats, so this is extra special. Being her mother's daughter, she wonders what the reason is behind the special treat, but she won't dare ask until later tonight, after dad has bought the ice cream!

Harm gets his children squared away in his SUV, and pulls over to where Harriet has parked the minivan, so that they can make their way to Dairy Queen together.


	10. Chapter 10: Sugar Pie Gummy Crunch

_A/N: There are days when I despise having an allergy to ice cream, specifically vanilla beans. Writing this chapter was tough. The Summer Berry Cake Cup Confection that Harm orders looks scrumptious. It really might be worth dealing with a sinus infection for a few weeks. Matthew's choice was inspired by a kid's menu item at Bruster's. _

* * *

The Rabb's, and the Roberts arrive at Dairy Queen, and disembark from their respective vehicles.

As they walk through the parking lot, Harm carries Matthew, and holds Trisha's hand, as he asks, "Ok kids, what are we having?

Matt exclaims, "Chocolate Sundae!"

Trisha replies, "I'm not sure yet, Daddy, can I choose when we get up there?"

Harm says, "Sure, honey, and what do you think we should get to take home to mommy, since she couldn't make it?"

Trisha rolls her eyes at her father, in a very similar fashion to that of her mother, "Duh, Dad! A cookie dough blizzard!"

Harm scolds Trisha, "I don't like the word 'duh' young lady. Are you sure that's what we should get her?"

Trisha looks appropriately chastised, "Sorry, Dad. Of course, she never orders anything else when we come here."

Harm smiles, "Yes, I know," He thinks to himself that it is Trisha's fault that Mac never orders anything different. He recalls that Mac had a habit of sneaking down to the kitchen at three in the morning, when she was pregnant with Trisha. She did that often, searching for some kind of snack, usually something in the form of chocolate. However, approximately five months into her pregnancy, Mac decided that raw cookie dough was her treat of choice. Mac had purchased a couple of tubs when AJ was doing a fundraiser for school, and she had put them in the fridge to make cookies that weekend. Harm fondly remembers the night that he stumbled into the kitchen, still half asleep, to find her sitting on the floor, with her hand in the half-gone tub, and cookie dough all over her face. It didn't take him long to wake up at the sight of his beautiful wife, even if she was half covered in cookie dough. He definitely had a good time cleaning her up that night!

Trisha looks up, and notices the goofy grin on her father's face, and says, "What's so funny?"

Harm snaps out of his memories, and replies, "Nothing! I'm just imagining how happy mom will be when we bring her a cookie dough blizzard." He thinks to himself, 'Maybe I will have to clean her up again, not that I would object.'

Trisha smiles, "So, what are you going to have Daddy?"

Harm purses his lips, "I'm not sure yet, either, let's see what they have that is new when we get in line."

They get up to the line, right behind Harriet and AJ, who are having a similar debate trying to decide what they want.

Harm asks Harriet, "So, what did you guys decide on?"

Harriet replies, "I think I am going to have the Peanut Butter Parfait, because I feel like over-indulging a little. It's not often that I can do that anymore with four kids underfoot all the time."

Harm says, "Hmm..so that's what I will have to look forward to when Mac and I have another one?" He had to stop himself quickly before he let the cat out of the bag. He almost said, "In less than a year."

Harriet cheekily states, "No Sir, you will still be trailing by one, so you will have to work quickly to catch up."

Harm drops his jaw, "Mrs. Roberts!"

Harriet laughs, "Sorry, Sir, couldn't resist."

Harm shakes his head at her, "And what is Master Roberts having?"

AJ answers for himself, "A butterscotch Dilly Bar."

Trisha says, "Ooh Daddy, that sounds good. Can I get a Cherry Dilly Bar?"

Harm looks at her, pretending to think it over, "Only if you promise to eat it, instead of wearing it this time!"

Trisha giggles, "Yay! I will get a red tongue!"

Harm laughs with her, "You already have a red tongue."

Trisha says, "But I want a bright red one, like a fire engine, or a clown nose!"

Harm shakes his head at her logic, as Matthew pulls on his shirt sleeve."

Harm inquires, "Yes, Matthew?"

Matt whispers, "Worms?"

Harm quietly says, "You want gummy worms in your hot fudge?"

Matthew nods, "And dirt."

Harm questions, "Dirt? How do I get dirt?"

Matthew says, "Cookies!"

Harm audibly sighs. He really hopes that Matthew will be able to go to sleep tonight, with the sugar rush he is going to have from one simple sundae. Hot fudge, Ice Cream, Oreo Cookies, and Gummy Worms. Ugh! If he wasn't so proud of him with the training, he would never agree to this. He can just see Mac mocking him now, giving in to his son's request for all that sugar. Well, what she doesn't know won't hurt her.

They get up to the counter, and Harm orders all of the requested items, and a Summer Berry Cake Cup Confection for himself. He surmises that it is at least somewhat healthy, having blueberries, raspberries, and blackberries as part of the ingredients.

Harriet is off to the side laughing her head off at Harm's discomfiture with Matthew's request. He glares at her, "Not a word to my wife, Mrs. Roberts!"

Harriet smiles, "My lips are sealed, but you know darn well that she will hear about it from one of the kids. They don't keep secrets from their mom."

Unfortunately, Harm knows that Harriet is probably right. He knows the kids don't keep secrets, and he is actually thankful for that, most of the time, except when it gets him in trouble! He hands the cashier the money for everything. The cashier gives him his change, and a tent with a number on it, relating back to his order number, so that his food can be brought out to them.

They are sitting at a large booth,midway through eating their dessert, when Harm's phone rings. He looks at the caller ID and says, "Harriet, it's General Cresswell, do you mind watching the kids for a few minutes."

Harriet says, "It would be my pleasure."

Trisha says, "Don't take too long, Daddy, or your ice cream will melt."

Harm gives her a quick kiss on the top of her head, "It's ok, Daddy doesn't need the extra weight anyways. It's not as easy to keep off at my age."

Harriet laughs, "Ain't that the truth."

Trisha sticks her tongue out at Harriet for inspection as her dad walks outside. "Miss Harriet, do you think my tongue is the right color yet?

Harriet laughs, "What color red are you trying to get?"

Trisha replies, "The color of the noses that Mommy and Daddy wore to a party. They looked kinda silly. Mommy had on this really pretty dress, but the nose just didn't go with it. And Daddy had to get a really big one, as he has a big nose! Oops, don't tell him I said that, please."

Realization dawns on Harriet, as she tries hard not to laugh at Trisha's remark about her father's nose size. She imagines that that isn't the only "big" thing he has. Before the blush takes over her face, she replies, "Well, there is a special reason behind those noses your parents were wearing. Uncle Bud and I went to the same party, and we were wearing those bright red noses also. Uncle Bud looked silly, too!"

Trisha asks, "Was it a clown party?"

Harriet explains, "No, it was a fundraiser to help kids who need it. Red Nose Day occurs one day each year to help raise money to make sure that children are safe, healthy, and educated. You see, not everyone is as lucky as we are. There are many kids out there that are from poor families. Their families can't always afford everything that their children need, so we try to help out any way that we can."

Trisha ponders what she says for a moment, and then says, "I want to help too. Maybe I can get a red nose to help out also."

Harriet says, "It's about more than just about wearing a red nose, sweetie, but there are all kinds of things that you can do to help others out. I'll talk with your mom and dad, and maybe both of our families could do something together to aid those less fortunate."

Trisha smiles, "I'd like that."

* * *

Outside, Harm answers his call, "Good Afternoon, Sir."

General Cresswell grumps, "It took you a few minutes to answer the phone, I'm not interrupting, am I?"

Harm says, "No Sir. Lt. Sims and I are out with our kids having an ice cream treat. My little girl was worried that I wouldn't get to finish mine, but I don't need the extra calories anyway."

Getting right down to business, the General says, "Captain, I heard that you had words with Lt. England this morning, in the courtroom, nonetheless."

Harm states, "Yes Sir, I was going to inform you before I secured, but you were in a meeting. That is why I left word with your yeoman to have you call me. She had some disparaging words to say about a senior officer, and I didn't appreciate it."

Knowing how protective Rabb can be of the Colonel, the General inquires, "This wasn't about defending your wife, was it?"

Harm replies, "No Sir, not directly. It was about the content of her language, and lack of remorse for her actions. I wouldn't tolerate her talking about anyone that way."

The General states, "Glad to hear that. I have to admit that when I first heard about it, I laughed. Normally my attorneys are complaining that the Colonel doesn't take enough recesses, and now I hear its too many. I have my suspicions regarding the reasons for the change in her demeanor, as does Admiral Morris, but you can inform us when you and Mac feel comfortable to do so."

Harm recalls his conversation with Mac in her chambers earlier, and realizes he will have to broach the subject again with her, and soon, if their superiors have caught on to her pregnancy also. "Thank you, Sir. I will discuss the matter with her at the earliest moment I think she will be receptive to the discussion."

The General chuckles at Harm's diplomatic response. He knows, all too well, how stubborn the Colonel can be at times. He asks, "So where did you leave things with Lt. England?"

Harm remarks, "I did tell her that I thought non-judicial punishment would be appropriate in this case, but if you have other thoughts in mind, I will leave it in your hands. I did ask her to report to me before staff call tomorrow morning."

Cresswell says, "Come see me in my office first thing, and we can discuss it. I may have the perfect solution, if you are in agreement. Once we decide on a course of action, we can summon her."

Harm replies, "Aye, Aye, Sir."

The General says, "Enjoy the rest of your afternoon, Captain, and I will see you in the morning."

Harm ends the call, "Thank you, Sir, I hope you have a good one as well."


	11. Chapter 11: Making Sure It's Really You

_A/N: Short update for a reader who needed a little pick me up today. Will update again when I can._

* * *

Harm steps back into Dairy Queen shaking his head. The General has been in command for almost a year, and Harm still can't read him from one moment to the next. He is just thankful that the General wasn't angry with him for dressing down Lt. England. He is also rather curious as to what Cresswell has up his sleeve, and if he will agree with the non-judicial punishment, or if he has something more formal in mind. For now, Harm will enjoy the afternoon with his kids, and worry about any work-related consequences in the morning.

He walks back to find Harriet sitting alone at the table. As he places a hand on her shoulder, she looks up and they both speak at once, "Everything ok, Sir?" and "Where are the kids?"

Harm takes a seat, surprised that his concoction hasn't fully melted as Harriet points over to the kids, who are over at the freezer looking at ice cream cakes, trying to decide whose birthday is next in line, so that they can help them pick a yummy ice cream cake. Harm looks over to see Matthew, Trisha, and AJ, giggling, and pointing out the different features that each of them like. He overhears Matthew ask AJ to lift him up so that he can see the top shelf, which AJ does with no complaints. A broad smile crosses Harm's features. She teases, "What's so funny, Harm?"

Harm smiles, "It's just nice to see that are kids get along so well. AJ has really taken to the 'older brother' role quite nicely."

Harriet chuckles, "Well, it certainly wasn't that way when Jimmy first came along. He was very unhappy about the new 'dumb baby' that had taken up residence in 'his' house. You should have seen the Admiral trying to explain to him what 'acting out' was. And poor Jennifer, he bit her."

Harm laughs, "I must have missed that whole scenario. The good news is that he bit Jennifer, instead of the Admiral."

Harriet grins, "Yes, that was definitely a blessing in disguise! I do like the fact that he tries to include the younger children in some of his activities though. Even if he doesn't always want to."

Harm squeezes her shoulder, "Mrs. Roberts, he is your and Bud's son, would you expect any less? You guys are always willing to help out whenever you can."

Harriet softly smiles at Harm's compliment, "Thank you. Speaking of that, I need to talk to you and Mac about something Trisha said while you were on the phone with the General. I explained to her the importance of Red Nose Day, and she wants to do something to help out less fortunate children as well. I figure between you, me, Mac, and Bud, we could come up with something that all the kids could participate in. However, that conversation will have to be tabled for the moment. I do think it is time we round the kids up. I need to get home, and get started on dinner."

Harm rises to his full height, "Yes, I suppose it is getting time to start dinner. I just have to run back up to the register and get my wife something to go first."

Harriet gives him a hug, "Thanks for a great afternoon, Harm." She calls over to AJ, "Honey, tell Trisha and Matthew good-bye, it is time to head home."

Harm returns her embrace, "I'll see you tomorrow, Harriet, give my best to my godchildren."

As the kids walk back over to their respective parents, Harriet takes AJ's hand to leave, while Harm takes Trisha's hand, and picks Matthew up to get in line for Mac's treat.

Mac arrives home, just as Harm is finishing draining the pasta for their fettuccini alfredo, with a side of glazed chicken for the carnivores in his house, and veggies for all. She can hear the laughter coming from the kitchen as the kids tease him about the extra bowl of broccoli. She sets her briefcase and cover down, and walks into the kitchen to greet her family.

Matthew notices her arrival first, and runs toward her full steam, "Mama's home!"

She crouches down to his level, and gives him a great big hug. She lifts him up in her arms for a closer snuggle, "Yes, I am, and how is my big boy today? Did you have a fun afternoon with your dad?"

Matthew nods emphatically, "Daddy says I'm a big boy now!". Mac places him back on the floor as she tells him, "Let me say 'hello' to you dad, and your sister, and change my clothes, and you can tell me all about it over dinner."

Matthew gives her a quick peck on the cheek, "Ok, Mama."

Mac walks over to Trisha next, who is putting glasses on the table for dinner. "And how was your day, Sweetie?"

Trisha whispers in her mom's ear, "Daddy let us get ice cream. Real ice cream! And he let Matthew get worms and cookies too."

Mac laughs, "Did he now? Are you sure that it was YOUR dad, and not some alien that inhabited his body?"

Trisha giggles, "Yes, Mom! But you can pull on his ear to check if you don't believe me. And we brought you back something too, in fact, we brought your favorite, cookie dough!"

Mac smiles, "I guess I will have to go thank Daddy then, won't I?"

Trisha rolls her eyes. She knows her parents love each other, but sometimes they are way too kissy faced for her liking.

Harm raises his eyebrow as Mac saunters over to him, and wraps her arms around his waist, "Hey, Sailor."

Harm returns her embrace and gives her a quick kiss, "Hey, Marine. Welcome home."

Mac kisses him more thoroughly as their offspring try to find some way to ignore their parents for a few minutes. When they break apart, she whispers, "Call that a prelude to the proper thank you I will give you later." She adds, louder for everyone to hear, "Trisha, it's definitely your dad. I don't think an alien would kiss me the same way."

Trisha's audible groan can be heard from the other room. Her parents laugh, and sneak in one more quick kiss.

Mac chuckles as she states, "I'm sorry that I couldn't join you all this afternoon. Let me go get out of my uniform, and you can tell me all about your day over dinner."

Harm leers at her, "I can help with that."

She swats him on the six, "Get dinner on the table, Squid, I'll be back in a few minutes."


	12. Ch 12: Add One to the Long List Of Rules

The Rabb family is sitting at the dinner table when Matt starts to relate his adventures today with training to his mom. Very proud of himself, he rambles, "Mama, we used pezzels, and Daddy said I was a good boy, and we had lunch, and I took a nap, and then we got ice cream, and we brought you home a treat."

Mac inquires, "Pezzels? What are those?"

Matt slides off his chair, and heads into the kitchen, "I get one, oops, I can't reach."

Harm inwardly groans as Mac follows Matthew into the kitchen. Matthew points up to the top of the counter, "Up there."

Mac lifts Matthew up so that he can see, and he reaches for the bag of pretzels that Harm had placed there when they were done practicing, "Pezzels."

Mac smiles at her little boy, "Pretzels! Ok you, let's go finish dinner."

After she sets Matthew back in his chair, she raises an eyebrow at Harm, and shakes her head in disbelief. Her eyes tell him that they will definitely be talking about this later.

They are midway through dinner when Matthew asks Mac, "Mama? Can you teach Daddy the right way to make cheese?"

Mac looks at Harm with a question in her eyes.

Harm responds, "I made him a grilled cheese sandwich for lunch, and apparently, I didn't cut it the right way."

Understanding, Mac ruffles Matthew's hair, "Did Daddy make triangles instead of squares?"

Matt replies, "Uh huh, and there were only two instead of four."

Mac smiles, "Ok, I will make sure Daddy knows how Mommy does it, so that he gets it right the next time."

Harm raises his eyebrows to his hairline at her response, with a twinkle in his eyes. Inwardly thinking, "I'll show her the right way to do things, just as soon as the kids go to bed!"

After both the children have been tucked in, and had story time for the night, Harm and Mac retire to their bedroom.

Mac immediately tells him, "We have a few things to discuss, Harm."

Harm looks down, thinking, 'Ut oh, I'm in more trouble than I thought.'

Mac walks over to him, voice slightly raised, "Did you call me the 'little woman' earlier?"

Harm blushes a deep crimson as he ekes, "um, maybe." He wonders how in the world she heard about that.

Mac isn't really angry, but isn't willing to let him off the hook just yet, "I overhead Bud telling CDR Iverson about you securing early, and I quote, 'I don't think the little woman would be too happy if I forgot to mention that to her.' Do you have a death wish, Flyboy?"

He counters, "At least I didn't say the ball and chain."

Mac punches him in the arm, "Harm!"

Harm reaches for her hands, in part to keep her from injuring him further, as he tells her, "I love you, Sarah."

Mac smiles up at him, with a twinkle in her eye, "That's better! I better never overhear those phrases out of your mouth again!"

Harm gives her a full flyboy grin, "But you didn't hear those phrases out of MY mouth, Counselor. I believe that would fall under the hearsay rule."

She yanks her hands away, and whacks him again on principle! "Semantics, Harm and you know it! At least now I know why you really sent the flowers."

He smiles, "You wound me, Mac. I sent the flowers only to cheer you up, not because of anything that I forgot I even said. And you know that you love me anyway, even if I do have a habit of sticking my size thirteen shoe in my mouth."

Mac shrugs her shoulders, "Eh..most of the time."

Harm grabs her around the waist, and holds her firm against him, "Just most of the time, huh? I'll have to remember that the next time I think of sending flowers."

She leans up, and gives him a soft kiss before relenting, "Ok, I love you all the time. I just don't always like you."

Harm grins mischievously, "Well, since you already don't like me, I might as well do this," as reaches down to her middle section, and starts tickling her sides.

She tries to get away, but she only succeeds in maneuvering them closer to the bed, which they end up falling onto sideways, both laughing.

Once they have settled back down, they are laying side by side, facing each other on the bed when Mac inquires, "You put pretzels in the toilet?"

Harm chuckles, "Yes…he needed something to aim at. What is wrong with that?"

Mac exclaims, "Clogging the toilet perhaps?"

Harm rolls his eyes, "Mac… I do know how to use a plunger, and a snake, and how to flush the line if I needed to. However, I was hoping they would disintegrate on their own. They must have been stale."

Mac laughs, "Didn't happen, did it?"

He shakes his head sheepishly, "No, I had to use the plunger, which was in the other bathroom by the way. I've already determined I will need to add a new rule to the training poster, 'Always have a plunger handy'. At least Matthew stayed still while he was laughing at me. He got a big kick out of us plugging the toilet."

Mac laughs, "You can add 'NO Food in the bathroom' as well."

Harm fusses, "Mac, we were having a good time, I'm not adding the 'no food' part, as his aim is definitely improving using it. We used onions too, and those didn't clog the toilet! Well, at least it was a good time until I high fived him, and he uttered some god forsaken phrase."

Her curiosity piqued, she inquires, "What did he say?"

Harm shakes his head, "Nope, not getting it out of me, Marine."

Mac rolls over on top of him, straddling his waist, and proceeds to run her hands down his chest until she reaches his waistband, daringly reaching down to caress him for just a second before moving her hands back up. She starts undoing the buttons of his shirt from the bottom, and scrapes her fingernails against his exposed abdominal muscles as she places soft kisses on his pulse point. "I have my ways, Sailor."

Harm is more than slightly dazed by the time her fingers have reached his upper chest, "You can have me any way you would like, Sarah, but my mouth is staying closed."

She brings her lips up to his, and uses her tongue to lightly run along the seam of his lower lip before she lightly nips at it. Harm's lips part involuntarily, and she uses the opportunity to slip her tongue into his mouth to tangle with his. As the kiss comes to a close, she taunts, "Your mouth seems to open just fine."

Realizing he needs to get his wife as dimwitted as he is, he starts running his fingers along her lower spine, and then up to the sides of her breasts, his fingers just lightly grazing them. As she starts to shiver, he runs his hands back down, and takes both sides of her sweater and lifts it over her head. Wrapping his arms completely around her, his lips meet hers in a devastating kiss. The rest of this conversation, and the fact that he needed to talk to her about announcing the pregnancy, is forgotten for the night as they lose themselves in each other.


	13. Ch 13: Naked Sailor on the Run

_A/N: Sorry for the lack of updates, real life has been a little chaotic. It will probably be this way for the next month or so. I hope this chapter makes up for the wait. Rating on the story has been bumped up. __**This chapter is for adults only!**__ If you aren't old enough to vote yet, come back a few years after the training wheels have been removed from your first car._

* * *

It is just before dawn, and Harm awakes slowly with this nagging feeling that he forgot something. As he starts to come to his senses, he realizes that the body he is spooned behind is naked, and so is he. A wide grin comes over his face, remembering the events of last night. He gives Mac a soft kiss on her shoulder, and she inadvertently shivers, causing her bare backside to rub against his already visible morning wood. She whispers breathlessly, "Harm.." He is just about to rekindle another bout of lovemaking, before the kids get up when it hits him that their door is unlocked. He abruptly jumps out of bed, searching frantically for his boxers. He snatches them off the floor and holds them in front of his nether regions, as he makes his way to flip the lock on their bedroom door.

Mac stirs, immediately cold at the loss of her husband's body heat. She rolls over to find his space empty. She starts to sit up, and can't help laughing at the scene in front of her. Harm, in all his glory, is running to the door, trying to strategically place clothing in front of areas not fit for children's eyes. "That's a nice view there, Sailor."

As he turns back from the door at her comment, he sees that the sheet has fallen to her waist, revealing her beautiful breasts, her nipples hardened from the cold air. His gaze instantly becomes heated, "I agree, Marine."

She quirks her eyebrow, "What do you say you get back over here, and warm me up before the kids wake up demanding breakfast."

Harm crosses the room in two strides, dropping his boxers next to his side of the bed, and immediately covers her entire body with his. He gives her a deep, long kiss and whispers, "Is that what you had in mind?"

Her brown eyes are almost black with desire, and she whispers seductively, "Almost…"

He gives that deep throaty laugh, that makes him even sexier in her eyes, as he questions, "Almost?"

She flips him over onto his back, removing the sheet from between them, as she straddles his waist, "Yes, there was an impediment to my feeling all of your skin against mine."

He runs his hands up to cup her breasts, lightly running his thumbs over her nipples, "Better, now?"

She leans down to kiss him as she takes him inside of her slowly. She whispers against his lips, "Much…"

Once she has him fully sheathed, she doesn't move, other than to clench her muscles around him, gripping him tightly.

Harm groans, "You're killing me here, Marine."

She releases him from her grip, and slides up just a little as she starts suckling on his pulse point, "You know you love it."

She is right, he does love it when she teases him, but he won't consciously admit it. He lightly grabs her hips, and pushes her back down before rolling them over. He places her arms over her head, and interlaces his fingers with hers. He then begins a slow rotation of his hips, where he only slightly slides in and out each time, hitting her hot spot with every move. He is moving very slowly, drawing out every sensation. Mac arches her back, enjoying the intense pleasure he is giving her, but at the same time wanting to increase the speed just a little bit. "Harm, stop teasing."

Harm grins, and leans down to suck on her earlobe, lightly running his tongue along the sensitive spot right behind her ear. He ignores her pleas, continuing the slow and sensual burn, as he loves her with long, steady strokes. Normally, any time they make love in the morning, it has to be hurried in order to get the kids and themselves where they have to be on time, or as close to on time as possible where Harm is concerned. He is taking full advantage of the extra time they have available this morning. However, each time he slides back into her exquisite heat, he is being pulled closer to the brink. He buries himself completely in her depths, and pauses for a moment, as he releases her arms, runs his hand down her body, and gives her a long loving kiss.

Mac smiles coyly, knowing precisely that he is taking a moment to compose himself. She teases, "What's the matter, Squid? Can't take the heat?" She emphasizes her point, with a nice clench of her internal muscles.

Harm groans, and places his weight on one of his forearms, tilting his body slightly to the side, and places his other hand on her hip, as he begins stroking her again. He angles his body so that he slides in a little deeper, and picks up the pace of his strokes. It doesn't take long for her to start writhing beneath him. He moves his hand off her hip to circle her nub in quick circles, as he pistons into her, taking them both over the edge at the same time.

He rolls onto his back, pulling her on top of him. He soothingly runs his hands down her back and six as he tries to regulate his breathing.

She gives him a soft kiss near his ear and whispers, "You never cease to amaze me, Harm, that was nice."

Harm turns his head to give her a sensual kiss, "Right back at, Marine. What do you say we try to get a last hour of sleep before we have to get up and shower before getting the kids ready?"

Mac smiles, "Sounds like a great plan." She drifts off to sleep, dreaming about the shower.


	14. Chapter 14: I'm Up Now

_A/N: I don't know what I am going to do with these two! This is another __**Adults only chapter**__ before we get back to the children and their antics._

* * *

Mac's internal clock alerts her to the fact that she has about forty-five minutes before her miniature version comes knocking on the door. She rubs Harm's chest, softly swirling her fingers through the springy curls, "Hey Sailor, it's time to get up and get a shower."

Harm murmurs something unintelligible, and tightens his hold on his wife.

Mac kisses along his jawline, "Harm, it's time to get up."

He turns his head, and gives her a quick kiss, "Ok, baby," and then turns his head back to the way it was, and starts snoring.

Mac shakes her head, and sighs, as she extricates herself from her arms. As she walks to the bathroom, she thinks to herself, smiling, 'Even though I was looking forward to a little more loving, I did make him work out a bit more than normal last night, and early this morning, so I should let him sleep. I'll just have him make it up to me later.'

When she is pregnant, her damn hormones make her libido go into overdrive. She thanks the lord every day that she married a man that still finds her attractive when she looks like a beached whale, and has the stamina to keep up with her. She is just in the beginning of starting to show with this pregnancy, so she doesn't feel unattractive just yet. The man may be over forty, but it hasn't hindered his performance in any way. He fulfills her needs, and then some. If she had known years ago what he was like in bed, she might have stolen him away from Annie or Jordan a lot sooner. However, she doesn't regret the wait because like fine wine, he just seems to get better with time. She wouldn't trade their life together away for all the coffee in Seattle.

She gets the water to the desired temperature, and steps into the shower, allowing the hot water to cascade over her curves. She has only been standing under the water for a minute and forty-three seconds, when she feels a hard, warm body directly behind her. Harm starts gently massaging her shoulders as he leans his head down, and whispers in her ear, "I thought we were going to shower together?"

Mac tilts her head to the side, enjoying his sensual kneading, and coyly replies, "I thought so too, but someone didn't want to get up this morning."

Harm can't resist her open neck, and starts nibbling his way across it between her ear and her shoulder. He presses his body more firmly against her, allowing her to feel all of him, "I'm up now."

Mac chuckles, "Well, I can certainly feel that, Sailor." She turns in his arms, and brings her mouth to his, nibbling on first his lower and then upper lip, before slipping her tongue inside to tangle with his. She gently pushes him back until his knees bump up against the seat in the shower. She inquires, "Think you could handle another round?"

Harm sits down, and looks up at her half dazed, "Your wish is my command." He lifts her up, providing her with support, allowing her to place her knees on either side of his legs as he slips effortlessly into her slick channel.

She places her hands on his shoulders to anchor herself, and rises up and then sinks back down, burying him to the hilt.

Harm groans, as he wraps his arms around her fully, "God, you feel so good, Baby."

Mac can only nod her head in agreement. Between their intense session at dawn, and her dream afterwards, her body is already in a fevered state. She needs to find relief quickly. This time is going to be fast and furious. She arches her body backwards so that her clit is rubbing against his pelvic bone as she begins to ride him at a frantic pace. Harm pulls her closer to him, taking her nipple into his mouth and suckling, almost hard enough to hurt, but it just adds to her pleasure. As she gets closer to her climax, she starts moaning, and she can no longer control the frantic movement of her hips. He holds her hips steady, and starts thrusting upwards until she screams his name with her release. He fuses his mouth to hers, to muffle her scream, and as her inner muscles grasp him like a vice grip, he tumbles over the edge right after her.

Harm changes their kiss to something a little softer, and lightly runs his fingers down her spine, drawing out their pleasure as they come down from their mutual highs. When the kiss ends, Mac buries her head into his neck, "Are you sure we have to go to work today?"

Harm chuckles, "Unfortunately, yes. But, we can continue this right where we left off later tonight."

Mac lifts her head and quirks her eyebrow, "Any chance you could break away for lunch?"

Harm lifts her off of him, holding her steady as she tries to stand up. He shakes his head at her, "Woman, you are insatiable!"

Once she has her balance, she reaches her hand down to help him up, "Are you complaining there, Sailor?"

Harm starts to stand up, but can't resist the dangling breasts in front of him on his way up. He gives each one a soft kiss, and then his hands softly kneads them as his lips make their way back up to her mouth. Mac groans in frustration. They definitely don't have time for another round. She tells him, "Don't be starting something you can't finish."

Harm gives her a quick peck on her lips, dropping his hands away from her breasts, "Aye Aye, Ma'am. I just wanted to make sure you know that I am perfectly content with how often we are making love." He adjusts the temperature on the water, attempting to pull any last remnants of hot water and lathers his hands with soap. He turns her so that she is standing under the lukewarm spray, "Now, we'd better get cleaned up before our offspring start pounding on the bedroom door."


	15. Ch 15: A Scunci's New Use

Mac finishes washing her hair, and steps to get out of the shower. She leans back in, and gives Harm one last kiss as she tells him, "Sorry about the cold water, Sailor, but at least it is for a good cause this time."

Harm gives her a full flyboy grin, "I will gladly deal with a cold shower any morning that I can wake up to what we just shared."

Mac smiles, as she grabs her bathrobe off the hook, "I'll go get the kids started, while you finish up in here. You have to be to work before I do this morning."

Harm grunts, "Don't remind me. Does that offer to stay home all day still stand?"

Mac chuckles, "Nope! You have to go play nice with the General."

As she walks out the door, she hears Harm mumble, "It's not the General I don't want to see."

Mac heads into Trisha's room first. She finds her daughter already out of bed and starting to get dressed. She thinks to herself, 'That's my little Marine.' She gives her a hug, and tells her, "Good morning honey. I'm going to get your brother, and then we can have breakfast. What do you want this morning?"

Trisha's response is muffled by her pulling her shirt over her head, but it sounded like something resembling "Daddy's Pancakes."

Mac tells her, "Ok honey. I'll go pull dad out of the shower so he can start them."

Trisha exclaims, "Mom, you can't go in there when he is taking a shower, he's naked!"

Mac clamps her hand over her mouth to stifle her laughter. Ah, to have the innocence of a six-year-old mind. She won't tell her daughter how nice Daddy looks naked, or that she is looking forward to seeing him that way again very, very soon. She smiles, and responds, "You're right, how silly of me. I'll just yell through the bedroom door."

She stops by the master bedroom on her way to Matthew's room, and opens the door a fraction. She sees her husband standing in front of the sink, shaving, with nothing on, but a navy blue towel wrapped around his waist. How she would love to go in there and pull the towel off and start another round, but, alas, adults have responsibilities that have to be taken care of. She raises her voice slightly, "Harm, get the lead out. Trisha want pancakes for breakfast, and she tells me that I can't come in there when you are naked. I'll get Matthew, you get the batter started."

Harm chuckles to himself once he realizes all of what Mac just said. He rinses his razor off in the sink, and heads to the closet for his uniform. He responds sharply, "Yes, Ma'am." He will have to ask Mac later how him being in his birthday suit came up in conversation with their daughter.

Mac reaches Matthew's room, and her little boy is still sound asleep. She sits down on the bed, and runs her hand through the hair that is sticking out in every direction. He looks so much like his Daddy, even in sleep. She gently rubs his back, "C'mon little man, it's time to get up."

He turns over to look at her with sleep filled eyes, "Still sleepy Mama."

Mac says, "Ok, but if you miss breakfast, you will miss Daddy's pancakes." That is the perfect motivation to get her little boy moving. As he gets out of bed, she wanders over to his dresser, "What do you want to wear today?"

Matthews rushes past her. Mac quickly turns around, "Matt, where are you going?"

Matt yells from just inside the bathroom door, "Potty! Mom, quick, help!."

Mac runs down the hall, "What's the matter?"

Matt is holding himself between his legs, "Need a ring."

Mac quickly looks around the bathroom for something suitable to use, and is completely at a loss until she looks down at her wrist. She removes her ponytail holder and tosses it in the toilet, "There you go."

Matthew quickly drops his shorts and pull up, and proceeds to aim perfectly through the target.

When he is finished going, Mac realizes that his pull up stayed dry throughout the night. She scoops him up, and gives him a bear hug, "That's my big boy. You and dad did make a lot of progress yesterday." She sets him on the footstool in front of the sink, and gives Matthew a high five.

Matt yells, "Oo-rah!"

Mac giggles as she thinks to herself, 'so that's what your Daddy wouldn't tell me.'

Harm enters the kitchen, dressed for work, and gives his little Princess sitting at the table a good morning kiss on the cheek. He asks, "Am I making regular pancakes or shaped ones?"

Trisha gives him a kiss back, "Good morning, Daddy. How about hearts?"

Harm replies, "I can do that." After all, this morning has been all about love. He walks over to the cupboards to start pulling out the necessary ingredients. He checks his watch, and realizes that he will only have time to make the first batch if he doesn't want to be late for his meeting with the General. Mac will have to handle the rest.

Mac enters the kitchen, and sits Matthew down at the table before heading over to help Harm. She steps next to him, and nudges his hip with hers as she whispers in his ear, "Your little clone is going to be a Marine, huh?"

Harm shakes his finger at his son, "You weren't supposed to tell her."

Matthew looks up at his father, "Tell her what?"

Mac smiles, "He didn't. I just gave him a high five, and hoped he would repeat whatever he told you."

Harm snakes his arms around Mac's middle and tells her, "You're sneaky, Marine!"

Mac gives him a quick kiss with a wink, "I told you last night, I have my ways!"

Harm shakes his head at his wife and son, but even the thought of his son growing up to be a Marine won't sour his mood this morning. He only hopes that it is enough to hold him through the meeting with the General and Lt. England.


	16. Ch 16:

**JAG HQ**

**Falls Church, VA**

**Cresswell's Office**

Harm arrives at JAG HQ, and barely has enough time to drop his cover and briefcase in his office before he is late for his meeting with the General. He could blame it on the traffic, but the truth was he just wanted to savor a few extra minutes with his wife and kids this morning.

He knocks on the General's door, and waits for permission to enter. Once given, he stands at attention in front of Cresswell's desk, "Captain Rabb reporting as ordered, Sir."

Cresswell chuckles at the fact that he saw the shit eating grin on the Captain's face before he entered the office. Of course, Rabb erased it from his features before coming to stand in front his superior's desk. The General advises him to have a seat. He leans over his desk with his elbows planted firmly on it, and his hands clasped, eerily reminiscent of how Admiral Chegwidden used to look when he wanted to discuss something personal. He inquires, "So, Captain, was there anything that you and the Colonel wanted to discuss with me?"

Harm shakes his head sheepishly, "Not yet, Sir. I planned to discuss it with the Colonel last night, but then something came up and we never got around to it."

The General replies tightlipped, "I see." If he were to venture a guess by Harm's demeanor, he believes that what came "up" was Rabb himself, but the ever-stoic officer in front of him masks his emotions well. Cresswell thinks to himself, 'Lucky man!'

Cresswell maneuvers around his desk to take the seat next to Harm, "Now, let's discuss what to do with Lt. England. My first thought was to have her accompany me to Quantico for requalification on my weapons skills. I took the Colonel once, and she pretty much cleaned the floor with my six. Your wife is definitely a Marine. That woman can field strip an M-16 faster than most men I have been in combat with. While I still shot expert, she beat the pants off of me, and then she had the balls to tell me with a smile that she could do it again, any time, any place! Somehow, I doubt that Lt. England can even find the right target."

Harm smiles at the General's assessment. Mac was so worried when they heard scuttlebutt that Creswell was being considered as the next JAG. She was afraid that he would hold their time in Okinawa against her. Mac is undeniably a formidable opponent on a shooting range. Harm affectionately remembers a paintball game they had played when they were first dating. She nailed his ass, literally. It hurt like hell at the time, but the tender loving care she gave him to make it feel better was well worth any pain he had endured. He has to resist not to rub the spot, in fond memory, in the General's presence, although the grin on his face might be giving away something already. He thinks to himself, 'If the General only knew what was going through my mind right now, I'd be court martialed for indecent thoughts about a fellow officer, even if I am married to her.' He instead tells the General, "I don't think the Lt. could hit the broad side of a barn! No offense, Sir."

The General decides to rib the Captain a little as he remarks, "Most Navy people can't."

Harm wisely keeps his mouth shut at Cresswell's insinuation.

The General idly wonders what it takes to rattle this Senior Officer, outside of his family of course. He tells Harm, "Maybe that can be a team building exercise one day. Navy versus Marines on a paintball field. My daughter speaks very highly of the battles they have at the Academy."

Harm decides to tease the General back just a little, "Which side does your daughter play on, Sir? As a first-year midshipman, she doesn't have to declare yet whether she wants to be a Naval Officer or a Marine Officer."

The General arches his eyebrow, "Don't go there, Rabb."

Harm chuckles, "Are you certain that Cammie is going to choose the Marines, Sir?"

The General responds, matter of factly, "Back to the business of Lt. England," while silently vowing to pay the Captain back when he is least expecting it.

Harm inwardly grins at the rise he got out of the General. He knows from living with a Marine that his minor victory will be short lived. He fully expects that there will be retaliation at some point, but for now he will enjoy his spoils. He answers, "Yes, Sir. You've told me what your first inclination was, but I have a feeling you have a different idea in mind."

Cresswell replies, "Yes, I do. I heard rumor that this office used to do several fundraisers for various organizations relating to Wounded Warriors, Toys for Tots, helping out families of those who have loved ones deployed, or trusts for children who have lost a parent in the line of duty, etc."

Harm nods, "Yes, Sir. Lt. Sims, CDR Robert's wife, used to organize several of those events. We donated all of the proceeds from the functions to one of the causes mentioned, and she varied the organizations we raised funds for. She also was very successful in organizing a USO show."

The General continues, "I suspect that Lt. England isn't all that fond of that sort of thing. I want to organize a Jag Field Weekend for the office and their families, enlisted and officer. We can have some competitive games of Navy vs. Marines: football, archery, shooting, volleyball, maybe even a race. And a section just for kids, where they just have fun. Perhaps a duck pond, kiddy fishing, bobbing for apples, sand art, finger painting, etc. We could add booths for arts and crafts, maybe a pony ride, a bouncing castle. What do you think?"

Harm thinks about this for a moment, and then smiles, "I think that our families would love it, it would definitely benefit a good cause, and I surmise that the Lt. would absolutely hate having to set it up. All in all, a win-win situation, Sir."

The General matches Harm's grin, "Well, I won't leave it entirely up to her, as I do want the event to be a success. But, she can work with my wife on the planning, and I'll inquire with CDR Roberts if he minds asking his wife to lend her expertise, if she has any spare time."

Harm agrees, "Excellent idea, Sir. I'm sure that my wife would think the punishment is adequate as well."

Creswell adds, "Speaking of your wife, the Lt. will be required to formally apologize to her, even if the insult wasn't heard by her directly."

Harm answers, "Thank you, Sir."

Cresswell buzzes his yeoman to have Lt. England come to his office. When summoned, she idly wonders why she is being ordered to report to the General. She was supposed to be meeting with Captain Rabb this morning, but she hasn't seen hide nor hair of him. He's probably reporting late as usual, no doubt with some excuse related to his children or his pain in the ass wife! Lt. England knocks, enters, and stands at attention in front of the General's desk, "Lt. England reporting as ordered, Sir."

The General leaves her standing at attention as he advises her of his plan for her non-judicial punishment. As she is standing there, she catches sight of Captain Rabb,though her peripheral vision, leaning against the wall by the fireplace. He has his arms folded over his chest, and his ankles crossed. He almost looks like he is smirking. It takes every bit of her military bearing not to narrow her eyes at him. She keeps her focus on the wall behind the General, knowing that it would not be in her best interest to piss him off any more right now. When he is done with his tirade, she remarks, "Understood Sir, will there be anything else?"

The General adds, "Yes, you will find the time to make an appointment with Colonel Rabb in her chambers, at her earliest convenience, so that you can formally apologize to her. I NEVER want to hear even a whisper about you disrespecting a senior officer again, or you will find a formal letter of reprimand in your record before I ship you out to a place less than desirable. I'll have PO Quinn give my wife your information so that she can contact you regarding the event preparations. You are Dismissed, Lieutenant."

Lt. England does a perfect about face, and leaves the General's office. She is madder than hell at what she has just been subjected to. She will tread lightly for now, but the Captain had better watch his back.


	17. Ch 17: I Don't Miss the Preacher's Son

_A/N: Real life chaos decided to take a breather most of this week, so I got a little break to write. Still hectic, but a little less than it has been the last few months. Hope you like the chapter, and I will post more when I can._

* * *

**JAG HQ**

**Falls Church, VA**

**Cresswell's Office**

General Cresswell looks at Harm after Lt. England has departed his office and remarks, "Well, I guess that went about as well as could be expected. I don't know what I was thinking bringing in some fresh blood around here. I knew that we needed some junior trial attorneys stationed here at HQ permanently for Commander Roberts to mentor. Apparently, I didn't make the best choices, at least not as far as Lt. England is concerned. I think perhaps she should have been one of the attorneys who just rotated in for a few months, to attend your training sessions, before I sent her off to another command."

Harm chuckles at the General's dry humor, and chooses his next words carefully, not wanting to offend the superior officer. He says, "It hasn't been all bad, Sir. Lt. Tiner seems to be coming into his own, and he is becoming both a better investigator, and a trial attorney, every day. He has definitely come a long way from the aloof Petty Officer he used to be when he was the Admiral's yeoman several years ago."

The General smiles, "Be thankful that I wasn't in charge back then. If he was as clueless then as I have heard, he never would have been selected for Officer Candidate School."

Harm sighs, "Tiner was just a kid then, and even though he was a bit scatterbrained at times, he is smart, and always had a good head on his shoulders. He just needed to grow up a bit. And as bad as Lt. England's personality is, her trial skills are actually decent. There are definitely worse choices you could have made."

The General's eyes twinkle with merriment as he teases Captain Rabb, "Let me guess, you would be referring to Lt. Vukovic."

Harm hesitates for just a minute before he chokes out, "Why would you think that, Sir?" Yes, Harm personally thought that Lt. Vukovic was a slimeball, and he really despised the way that the Lieutenant leered at his wife. There was more than one occasion where Bud had to reel him in before Harm decked the man, or worse. However, Harm wasn't aware that the General knew any of that.

Tongue in cheek, the General replies, "Just because you didn't complain, doesn't mean I didn't know how you felt about the guy. I didn't want to have to court-martial my Assistant JAG."

Harm lets a small grin overcome his features as he asks, "Is that why the Lieutenant transferred out of here earlier then the rest of the group with him?"

The General answers, "That is only one of several reasons. I originally considered having him permanently stationed here, so that I could keep an eye on him personally. Unfortunately, his reputation proceeded him. Instead, I decided to send him to London, under Captain Turner's tutelage. I've heard that Sturgis is about as by the book as they come."

Harm replies deadpanned, "That is completely true, he is after all the only son of a preacher. Mac and I hated it when he was slated as the interim JAG. He enjoyed the administrative side of things a little too much for our liking. In his time, Captain Chaplain Turner was a force to be reckoned with as well. Unfortunately, his sweet disposition didn't completely rub off on his son, or if it did, Sturgis lost it along the way somewhere."

The General states, "I didn't realize that you were all that familiar with his family."

Harm nods, "Sturgis and I went to Annapolis together, and were very good friends for many years. Our relationship soured when he was sent to investigate ME. I was out on a carrier for quals, and ended up having to shoot down a foreign civilian aircraft that was non-responsive to calls, and was headed for an offshore oil rig. Sturgis accused me of murder without so much as even asking for my side of the story!" The General quirks his eyebrow in question before Harm continues, "Don't get me wrong, I expected no personal favors from our long-standing friendship. You have to set those feelings aside when you are investigating folks that you know. That being said, I did expect him to at least give me the benefit of the doubt. I am all about searching for the truth, and thought that he was also. He didn't even care that I had attempted other methods to get the aircraft's attention before I fired. However, I was tried and convicted in Sturgis' mind before the investigation that eventually cleared me was even complete. We managed to repair the relationship enough to co-exist, but there is too much water under the bridge for us to ever be close friends again."

The General pauses for a moment to absorb Harm's assessment of Sturgis before stating, "Damn! I know Turner was a hard ass, but I didn't know he was that bad. I was a little shocked that he was selected for Captain after some of the things I read in his file. However, he performed well here as acting JAG and that tipped the scales in his favor for promotion. I'm thankful that in your case, the true won out. I'm also glad that you passed up the FJA position in London in favor of staying here. It sounds like I made the right choice in sending Vukovic to him. If the Lt. pulls the type of behavior he did here with several female personnel, Captain Turner will have him up on charges fairly quickly. If he doesn't, maybe Turner can turn him into a decent officer. Either way, the Lieutenant has to deal with the dismal weather in London."

Harm shakes his head at Cresswell's implication, "I thought it was just Mac he looked at improperly."

The General laughs, "No wonder you wanted to punch his lights out! I didn't realize he looked at the Colonel that way. I thought he only flirted with the single women he thought he could charm, which was mostly enlisted personnel and junior officers. Unfortunately, he never went far enough to actually exhibit behavior that I could charge him with. He always kept his actions a shade away from conduct unbecoming, and sexual harassment. If a woman told him 'no' he just moved onto the next unsuspecting woman. I had no idea that he had his eye on the Colonel. He couldn't have possibly been stupid enough to think he could charm her."

Harm states, "Thankfully, Mac didn't notice it firsthand either. The only reason she even knew about it was by prying the information out of me when I was in a particular foul mood, and wouldn't tell her why."

Cresswell smiles, "I'm sure it isn't the first time she has had to do that. I often find that it sometimes easier to get information out a brick wall than it is to get you to open up."

Harm doesn't take any offense at the General's comment. He knows that he can be completely obstinate at times. Then a wide grin suddenly appears across his face. Before the General can ask why, Harm comments, "Mac said that Vukovic could look at her whatever way he wanted, but if she ever caught him, she would 'bend him like a pretzel.' I almost dared him to do it, just so I could watch her wipe the floor with him. However, I didn't want the mother of my children in the brig, so I left it alone. It's a shame you didn't let him stick around long enough to try a few cases before her though, that would have been fun to watch!"

The General looks at Harm with mild amusement, "You have a warped sense of humor, Captain!" Cresswell stands up, "It's been fun chatting; however, I have a call with the SecNav in a few moments, and you need to go convince your wife that it's time to let the cat out of the bag."

Harm stands up, and comes to attention, "Aye, Aye, Sir!" before being dismissed.

He leaves Cresswell's office, and for some unknown reason, Harm finds himself whistling on his way to Mac's chambers. He glances at his watch, and realizes that she is most likely in court already. He will just leave a note with her assistant to buzz him when she takes a break.


	18. Chapter 18: Rice and Rabbits

_A/N: Sorry, it's been far too long since I last updated this one. My sincerest apologies. I hate it when you write ahead, and then can't figure out the middle sections. In case we haven't realized from the other story updates, I can't get a certain song out of my head right now._

* * *

Harm is sitting in his office, waiting for his wife to call when he looks up to find Bud tapping on the side of his door.

Harm looks up, smiling the same grin he has had plastered on his face all morning, and queries, "What can I do for you Bud?"

Bud glances down at the stack of multiple files he is carrying and replies, "Well Sir, I just wanted to go over the budget with you when you have time. I did finish the facilities portions like you asked, and I fine-tuned a few other pieces as well. I just wanted to run everything by you before we brief it out to the General."

Harm takes a quick glance at the clock, and figures it will be at least another half an hour before his Marine takes a break, her bladder permitting of course. He tells Bud, "Sure, come on in, and close the hatch."

They spend the next forty-five minutes going over all of Bud's changes, and Harm is impressed. Bud would do great with all the Administrative tasks it takes to be the JAG, definitely not the type of stuff Harm ever wants to deal with. Bud, like most everyone else in the office, has noticed that Harm has been sporting a shit-eating grin all day long. And it hasn't dissipated, even going over the most boring thing in the world of the annual budget. As Bud is putting all the files in order he decides to inquire, thinking he knows what is behind the glow, but wanting to verify the facts. He asks, "Sir, if you don't mind my asking, are you and the Colonel expecting again?"

Harm knows he should wait to make any announcements, even to their friends, without Mac's consent, but Bud, unlike his wife, is capable of keeping a secret.

Harm places his index finger up to his lips and mutely nods his head.

Bud's eyes go wide. He always pictured the Captain and Colonel as such strait-laced people. He can't believe that they are going to be expecting another little one. I mean yes, Matthew is at the potty-training stage, and Trisha is in elementary school, but he still didn't expect them to be having multiple kids as fast as him and Harriet did. After the way Harm had behaved in Australia, he actually thought Harm was more of a prude than the playboy persona that most fighter jocks rightly earned with their dress whites and gold wings.

Harm looks at Bud and chuckles, "Don't look at me like that Mr. Roberts, you have several young children yourself! You know darn well how it happened."

Bud turns several shades of red before stuttering, "I know Sir, it's just..you guys are my mentors, the perfect examples of good order and discipline, and I find it hard to imagine the two of you going at it like rabbits."

Harm gives him a wide grin as he chuckles, "What can I say, Bud, she turns me on like Mr. Coffee with an automatic drip."

Bud is stunned speechless for several moments. The mental image of that was definitely something he didn't need to view. When he finally can clear his throat and find his voice again, he stammers, "I really didn't need to know that, Sir."

Harm just chuckles at poor Bud. Harm hasn't seen him this this far off his game in quite a long time. He will have to remember that the next time they have to square off in court, not that it occurs very often anymore. He tells him, "You're right Bud. I never said a word. But next time we have a discussion like this, we need to do it over beers, not in the office!"

Bud still feels like a parent who caught their kid making out in the backseat of a car. Still thoroughly flustered, he responds, "Of Course, Sir. I'm Sorry, Sir. It won't happen again."

Harm pats Bud on the back, "Don't worry about it, Bud. Just don't breathe a word yet, to anyone, ESPECIALLY Harriet. We will be making the announcement soon enough, but not until my wife says its time."

Bud proceeds to open Harm's door, just as Harm's phone starts ringing, "Don't worry Sir, I won't breathe a word to anyone."

Harm catches the phone mid second ring, and just as he picks it up, the receiver falls out of his hands, "Rabb, Dang It!"

The sultry voice on the other end says, "Oh, I must have dialed the wrong number. My Petty Officer mentioned that there was a rather good-looking man who left me a message to call him when I got a break, but I wasn't looking for a rabbit."

Harm chuckles, "Ha, Ha! Very funny, Colonel. It's odd that you should mention bunnies since Bud and I were just talking about them."

Mac, her curiosity peaked, inquires, "What?"

Harm replies, "Well, apparently I have been extra smiley today, and Bud decided to call me on it. Then, he got thoroughly embarrassed by my response, so I guess that makes us even."

Mac chuckles, "Oh, so that's why Tiner was so bubbly in court and giving me knowing looks. Although, Lt. England didn't seem to share in that mood, she looked rather pissy when she came to my chambers to apologize for her behavior before court this morning. You have been advertising that you got lucky this morning, huh Captain?"

Harm sheepishly replies, "Not knowingly, Mac. You know that I wouldn't blatantly spell that out for everyone. But, in my defense, my wife was a little over zealous this morning. Not that I am complaining in the least. You can feel free to use me as a tool for your pleasure any time you want."

Mac decides to turn the tables on him. She whispers seductively, "Well, court doesn't reconvene until I say it does, so how about you come to my chambers for lunch?"

Harm goes to sit in his chair to hide his very visible immediate reaction to her suggestion and nearly falls on his keister. He squeaks, "In the office Mac? Are you trying to get us both court-martialed?"

She chuckles, "Not at all Harmon. I ordered Chinese. So, get your butt up here and eat lunch with your wife. We'll save dessert for later at home. I'll see you in five minutes." She hangs up the phone, not waiting for him to answer. She figures she will see him in about ten to fifteen minutes, depending on how long it takes him to recover from her suggestive teasing.


	19. Chapter 19

Mac's Petty Officer announces Harms arrival seven minutes after Mac hung up on him. He closes her door, and shakes his index finger at her, "That wasn't very nice, Marine."

Mac runs her hand down the front of his chest, and glances at his crotch as she chuckles, "You managed to recover alright, I see."

Harm lifts her up, places her on her desk, ensuring that he doesn't place her butt in the lunch spread out all over it, and stands between her legs. He just stands there for a moment, before he takes his hand, and starts lightly caressing the back of her right knee. He leans in close to her face until his lips are close enough to hers that you could barely fit a hair between them as his hands travel upwards just above the hemline of her skirt. She is totally ready to just throw caution to the wind and beg him to take her right here and now.

When Harm hears her breath catch in her throat, he steps back away from her, walks in front of her desk, and takes a seat in the chair. He nonchalantly asks, "What did you get me? Shrimp chow-mein and Mixed Vegetables?"

It takes Mac a moment to catch her breath again. Once she does, she slides off her desk, and turns to face Harm with her arms folded just below her breasts and gives an exasperated huff! She states, "I suppose I deserved that."

Harm waggles his eyebrows at her, and grabs his chopsticks, thoroughly pleased with himself for leaving his Marine flustered.

Mac decides to just sit down and enjoy lunch with her husband. There isn't any point in waging this kind of war with him, because right now she would be the one that would suffer more. It's really kind of bad to want to seduce your husband 24/7. However, that doesn't mean she won't pay him back after they get home. She grabs some Kung Pao Chicken and inquires, "So, how did the meeting go with the General this morning?"

Harm smiles, remembering the dressing down that Lt. England received, and then frowns knowing that he needs to work the General's request into conversation. He rambles, "Let's see. He praised your marksmanship skills. He is not only making Lt. England apologize to you, but making her organize a charity event with Harriet's help as well. The General hopes that Captain Turner can cure Lt. Vukovic of his philandering methods. He thinks we need to make the announcement that you are pregnant, and he is afraid his daughter is going to become a Naval Officer instead of a Marine. Yeah, that about sums it all up." As soon as he is finished speaking, he instantly puts more food in his mouth.

Mac sets her chopsticks down, leans back in her chair, and starts tapping her manicured nails on the desk.

Harm swallows, and asks, "What?"

Her eyes glowing with mild annoyance she states, "You aren't that sly, Sailor."

He should have known better than to try and slip that into casual conversation. The sharp staccato echoing in the room is a sure sign that she is about to strike. Harm gulps, "What do you mean?"

Mac picks the chopsticks back up and looks down at her plate, merely moving her food around with them. She answers quite matter of factly, "I'm happy the General remembers my kicking his butt on the range. I'll have to see if he wants to rematch sometime. Lt. England apologized this morning before court, and treaded very lightly while court was in session. I feel bad for Harriet that she will have to spend time with the woman. I think that Vukovic will always be a womanizer, but if anyone can show him the path to righteousness, it would be Sturgis. I will gladly talk to the General's daughter about why the Marines are better than the Navy, and…" She looks directly at Harm, and barks in her best Marine voice, "I've informed MY Commanding Officer of my condition, as required. I want to wait until after we have the ultrasound done before we make our announcement to everyone else, regardless of what they suspect to be true, and I don't want to hear anything more about it until then!"

This being Mac's 3rd pregnancy, Harm really should have learned by now to tread lightly with her un-natural hormonal acts. Sometimes, like last night and this morning, they definitely work in his favor. However, when he sticks his foot in his mouth, like right now, his odds might be better walking around a minefield in Afghanistan.

Before he can utter the words "I'm sorry" there is a knock at the door to Mac's chambers. Mac looks away from him, and provides a curt "Enter" still annoyed with her husband.

Mac's assistant opens the door, and waits at attention. She immediately tells her, "At ease."

Petty Officer Algan states, "I'm very sorry to interrupt ma'am, but your phone was emitting a continuous beeping noise when I pressed the intercom button, and Petty Officer Quinn is on the phone. General Cresswell is asking to speak to Captain Rabb immediately, and his yeoman thought he would check here after he didn't find the Captain in his office."

Mac glances at her phone, and notices that it is off the hook. Harm struggles to keep his smile contained, but a wide grin crosses his features when he realizes exactly how the receiver ended up turned on its side. Mac in turn, shoots daggers at him with her eyes, but the corner of her mouth upturns in a small smile too. She says, "Thank you Petty Officer. You're dismissed."

After Mac's yeoman has left the office, she says, "Duty calls, Sailor. Get the lead out before the General sends out a search party for you."

Harm stands up, and walks around to Mac's side of the desk. He takes her hand in his, and says, "I'm sorry, Sarah. We can tell everyone when you are ready. I love you."

Mac squeezes his hand, "I love you too. But don't think you are off the hook just yet, Sailor."

Harm gives her a quick kiss, and heads towards the door. As he turns the knob, he grins, "Hey Mac. I might not be off the hook, but the phone still is. You might want to fix that before anyone else important tries to call and wonders what is going on in here!"

He slides out the door just before a rather thick law book smacks him squarely in the head.


	20. Chapter 20

Harm races back down the stairs, two at a time, knowing the General will not want to be kept waiting. As he approaches Petty Officer Quinn's desk, he is told, "Go on in Sir, he's expecting you."

Before Harm can even come to attention, Cresswell tells him to take a seat.

The General gets straight to the point, "Captain, I apologize for interrupting your lunch, but I need you on a transport of out Andrews as soon as you can pack a bag and get there."

Harm replies, "I have a bag packed in the car, Sir, I was told several years ago, long before I was married, that it was better to keep a packed sea bag in my car than golf clubs."

The General chuckles, "I bet I don't need to guess where those words of wisdom originated."

Harm laughs, "No Sir, I'm sure you don't. What can I say? She started her training of me early on in our partnership. Little did I know at the time that she was preparing me for married life. Although, when I pack up the wife & kids' stuff there isn't room in the cargo area for a sea bag or golf clubs. You have no idea how many pairs of shoes that woman considers 'essential' when traveling."

Th General replies, "I don't doubt it, but you won't need any of that this trip. You are headed to Naval Strike and Air Warfare Center (NSAWC), in Fallon, Nevada. A Captain Jonas has requested you personally for the investigation."

Harm sputters out, "Boomer? I didn't realize he made Captain. When did he get to Top Gun? Sorry Sir, none of that is important, but I am honestly shocked! We served together in the same squadron on the Patrick Henry, and he was barely officer material then. One of the last times I saw him, he was dancing with a blow up doll. I sincerely hope he grew up. What the heck happened?"

The General responds somberly, "A Class A mishap involving two F-18F Super Hornets on a training mission. The planes crashed mid-air. One of the planes was able to land safely, the other crashed into the desert. On the crashed aircraft, the RIO was able to safely eject, but the pilot wasn't so lucky. This is going to be a messy one."

Harm inhales a sharp breath, "Yeah it is." He takes the folder from the General containing the preliminary information, and grimaces as a thought clicks in his head.

Cresswell inquires, "Did I miss something?"

Harm replies, "No, it's just that Mac has an ultrasound later this week, and I don't think I'll have this wrapped up fast enough to be back in time. I'm sorry, please forget I said that."

The General raises his eyebrow in question.

Harm replies with a small smile, "Sorry Sir, I know that you already had suspicions that I just inadvertently confirmed, but Mac seems very hesitant to spread the news until after she has had the ultrasound."

The General grows concerned, "There isn't anything wrong is there?"

Rabb replies, "No Sir. I don't think so, at least not that we are aware of. This pregnancy just feels different to her than the last two and we aren't quite sure why. She just wants to confirm that all is well. It's female logic, General, I will never understand it. However, with her track record, I don't tend to overlook things when she gets weird vibes. They usually mean something; it just isn't always evident what the hidden message contains in the early stages."

The General nods, "I'm sorry, but I really do need you on this investigation. Maybe you can see if Commander Robert's wife could go with her? Or does she not know yet either?"

Harm shakes his head, "No, she doesn't. Mac really is keeping this close hold for now. However, there is one person who could help. I'll call her on my way to Andrews. Is there anything else I need, Sir?"

The General responds, "No. Safe travels, and provide me an update as soon as you have one. And I'm sure I don't need to caution you about the press, I'm sure they have plenty of their own speculations on this, but we are offering nothing until we know what happened."

Harm replies, "Aye Aye Sir. This isn't my first rodeo. I'm become an expert over the years of avoiding the media circus. It probably comes from having dated a producer at one point in my life. Don't ask, it was at a very low point. I'll call you when I'm wheels down and at least have a preliminary update. As soon as I have a sense of what happened here, you will be my first call."

* * *

Harm leaves the General's office and runs back upstairs, hoping that Mac hasn't gone back into court yet.

He arrives just outside her chambers, slightly out of breath to hear her yeoman tell him, "She's still in there. I'll just let her know you are back."

She presses the intercom, "Sorry to interrupt, again, Ma'am, but Captain Rabb is here."

Mac chuckles, "Send him in already."

Harm has enough time to close the hatch and turn around to see Mac packing up the various containers of their lunch. She says, "Sorry Sailor, I don't have time for a quickie right now, I have to get back into court. You will have to wait until later tonight to ravish me, but you can snack on what is left of lunch for now to tide you over."

Harm's smile falters, "Uh, Mac, about that…"

The color drains from her face, "What's wrong?"

Harm sighs, "I have to leave. Mishap at Fallon. At least one known fatality. Have to be on a plane out of Andrews ASAP."

Mac gets a tear in her eye, as she realizes what he is telling her. She states, "You won't be here for the ultrasound."

Harm steps over to her, takes both her hands in his, and intertwines their fingers. He quietly says, "It's not likely that I will be back in time, but I will do my very best."

Mac mutely nods. She asks, "Do you want me to reschedule it?"

Harm replies, "No. As much as I want to be there, I know that you need to have your nerves set at ease, and I don't want you to have to wait for me to do that."

Mac says, "I'm not sure I want to be alone for this one."

Harm assures her, "You won't be."

Mac exclaims, "What? Who is going with me? We haven't told any of our friends, so I can't ask one of them."

Harm says, "Not necessary. I'm calling mom on the way to Andrews. I don't want you to be alone either."

Mac lets her inner Marine out, "You don't need your mother to come out here to be with me. I'm a big girl and take care of myself!"

Harm gathers her in his arms, "I know that Mac. But I don't like to see any of my girls upset. Besides, Mom will be ecstatic to spend some time with her grandkids. And, it will make me worry less about leaving you here alone to deal with everything."

Mac burrows into his embrace, and gives a little pout, "Fine. But just so you know, big girls don't cry. And neither do Marines."

Harm chuckles, "Is this one of those 'fines' as in you are ok with this plan, or a 'fine' as in you are right and I need to shut up right now?"

Mac smiles into his shoulder, "Both. And I need to get back to court, and you need to get your six to Andrews. So, hightail it out of here."

Harm releases his hold on her, and brings his hands to cup her face as he softly kisses her lips, "I love you, Marine. Tell the kids I'm sorry I didn't get a chance to say good-bye, but I will come home from my trip bearing gifts."

She laughs, "I love you too, Sailor. Call me when you land."

Harm gives her one last loving look that penetrates her soul, and softly says, "Bye."

As he turns around to leave, Mac swats his six.

He turns around, "What was that for?"

Mac shrugs her shoulders, "Just because." She winks at her, " I'll show you when you get home. Good luck!"


	21. Chapter 21

_A/N: It's always nice to hear from readers. I especially love it when I hear from someone who is new to reading JAG as well. I don't want to give too much away, but for those of you concerned about Mac, she will be fine, I promise._

* * *

Harm runs back down the stairs, out to the parking lot of JAG Ops. He is definitely getting a good dose of cardio today. Between running up and down the stairs repeatedly, and his and Mac's activities last night and this morning, it might be a good thing he can sit and relax on a plane. While he still keeps himself active, his body tries to remind him, every once in a while, that he isn't twenty anymore. Especially his back and his knee. Although he only has himself to blame for his back hurting this time, it kept hitting the shower wall, but the warm feelings in the front more than made up for it. Hopefully he has a tube of Icy Hot still in his travel bag. He might need it after a four-hour flight.

He audibly sighs. He was hoping that him and Mac could continue where they left off before work this morning, once the kids were in bed for the night. But alas, someone else requires his services, even if they are for his brain vice his body. He is going to yell at Boomer when he sees him. Not so much for pulling him away from his plans for the evening, but for making him miss the ultrasound appointment. As strong as he is trying to be for Mac, he is concerned too, and he will be ecstatic to get the much-needed reassurances of the doctor that all is progressing with her pregnancy as it should. He also doesn't like leaving Trisha and Matthew without saying good-bye first. His mini-marine worries about him almost as much as her mother. Mac is going to have a house full of tears when she gets home, and she really doesn't need anything additional put on her in her current condition.

He straps himself into his SUV, and keys up the Bluetooth, so that he can talk while driving to Andrews. "Siri, call mom."

Trish answers on the second ring, sounding a bit harried, "Well, hello there, stranger. To what do I owe the pleasure?"

Harm smiles, "It hasn't been that long since I called, Mom. You sound a bit frazzled. Is everything ok?"

Trish chuckles, "Only because your wife insists that you call me frequently. Before you got married, I was lucky to hear from you only on special occasions. I'm fine, honey. I'm just got a showing at the gallery tomorrow night, and we are trying to put together the finishing touches for the exhibit. How is Mac feeling? How are the kids?"

Harm winces, thinking his mom might not be able to be with Mac for the ultrasound after all. He replies, "Actually mom, that is part of the reason I am calling."

Trish almost drops her clipboard, "Harmon, what's wrong? You tell me right now."

Harm rushes, "Mom, Trisha and Matthew are just fine. Mac is doing well too. She's just been feeling a little off with this pregnancy, compared to the others, and she is supposed to have an ultrasound later this week. I just found out that I have to go TDY immediately, to investigate a flight mishap, and I don't know if I will make it back in time. She won't reschedule it, and I don't want her to. I was kind of hoping that you would fly out here and go with her so that she wouldn't be alone."

Trish states, "Hang on a moment, Harm," as she yells to one of her subordinates, "Margie, can you finish checking off the rest of this list. I need to go to my office for a few minutes."

Harm hears a woman in the background, "Yes, Mrs. Burnett."

Trish starts walking back towards her office with heavy steps. Harm hears the door close, and his mother plop down on something, most likely her overstuffed armchair. She says, "Alright Harm, I can talk freely now. What do you mean she has been feeling off? Is she moody? Is she having pain or bleeding?"

Harm cautiously answers, "Take a breath, mom. No pain or bleeding. She has been moody, but I just chalk that up to the hormones of pregnancy. She has gained weight faster than she did with either Trisha or Matthew. Other than that, and a weird vibe she has, nothing seems out of the ordinary."

Trish exhales a breath she didn't realizes she was holding. She tells Harm, "I've never been one to underestimate a mother's intuition. If Mac thinks there is something going on, there probably is, but it doesn't necessarily mean that there is something wrong. I think you told me before that she had a case where she was trying to solve someone's murder and she just read the signals in her vision wrong. You couldn't convince the General to send someone else for this? She really could use YOU there."

Harm explains, "Unfortunately, no. Even if there was someone else with my skill set to investigate this, I was personally requested by the CO of the squadron. He is one of the pilots I used to fly with off of the Patrick Henry. Believe me, I tried to get out of it. I even mentioned Mac's appointment as the rationale, but don't you dare tell her I told the General she is pregnant!"

Trish nods, even though Harm can't see it. She chuckles, "Harm, I'm smart enough to know not to willingly anger a pregnant woman. You would think that you would have learned that lesson already by now, but you are male, so I'll forgive you."

Harm replies sheepishly, "What can I say, we have thick skulls."

Trish cracks up laughing, "Especially in your case. Regardless of how many times I told you that you couldn't fly off the roof without wings, you still kept trying. And how many years did it take for you to tell Mac that you loved her?"

Harm groans, "Too many. I eventually did, and my life has been a lot happier since I let go and admitted it to her. So, will you please give it a rest so we can get back to the matter at hand?"

Trish chuckles, and asks, "When is her ultrasound?"

Harm replies, "On Thursday at 1000 hours. Do you think you will be able to fly out and be with her?"

Harm hears her shuffling around on the other end. He inquires, "Mom, what are you doing?"

She replies, "I'm trying to see if I grew a pair of wings. I mean I know I'm angelic, but the last time I checked, I didn't have any attached either."

Harm shakes his head, and responds exasperated, "Mom!"

Trish, still laughing, replies, "I have to be here for the opening tomorrow night, we also have a showing Wednesday evening, but I think Margie can handle that in my absence. I can take either a late evening flight or the red eye on Wednesday night. That should get me there early enough in the morning to at least meet her at Bethesda, if not at the house before her appointment. If I can't find a flight, I'll see if Frank can borrow the company jet."

Harm says, "Thanks Mom. I really appreciate it, and whether Mac will admit it or not, she will also."


	22. Chapter 22

_A/N: I actually had a few parts of this chapter written when I started this story last summer, before the story took off on its own. It definitely needed some fine tuning and additions though._

* * *

Mac is sitting in the waiting room waiting to be called back and is trying to keep her tears at bay. Trish was supposed to be flying out to come to this appointment with her, but when Mac woke up this morning, she had a message on her cell that Trish's flight was delayed out of Chicago. She would be there, but would be running late, so she would just take a taxi once she landed to meet her at the hospital. She admonishes herself, 'Damn these hormones! I really wish Harm would have let me move the appointment until he gets back. I don't think that anything is wrong, but I don't want to be alone either.'

The nurse beckons, "Colonel MacKenzie, the doctor is ready to see you now. Let's get your vitals and bloodwork drawn, and I will take you back to the room."

Mac enters the sterile room, and sheds her clothes to don the hated hospital gown. While she waits, a bunch of random thoughts are cycling through her mind. 'Why do these rooms have to be so freaking cold all the time? I understand I am supposed to have some body heat from the baby, but this is insane. Who in the heck decided that the color of these gowns should be pink? I can just picture my fighter jock husband wearing one of these! Hmm…that's an image I could really use right now. Harm wearing nothing, but a flimsy pink hospital gown that I could easily slide my hands under, or just tear shreds off a piece at a time, revealing his gorgeous body to me. Maybe, it opens it the back, and I could rest my cheek between his shoulder blades as I slide my hands around his waist from behind to reach down and grab….'

Her musings are abruptly interrupted by the clearing of the Dr.'s throat. A blush creeps up her neck, and she thanks god the Dr. can't read her thoughts. Although, those thoughts, and acting on them is how she ended up seeing this particular type of doctor in the first place.

Pretending not to notice that her patient is off in la la land, CDR Stockland states, "Colonel, it's good to see you again. This is LT Mitchell, and she will be helping me with the ultrasound today. How have you been feeling?"

Mac takes a deep breath before rambling, "I've been doing good for the most part. Harm thinks I am putting on more weight than I have in the past couple of pregnancies. I'm still exercising, but I'm eating like a horse, so it's natural to gain some weight. I told him my metabolism has just slowed down, but he isn't buying it. He's thinks something hinky is going on, and honestly, this pregnancy feels different to me than when I was carrying Trisha or Matthew. Thankfully, the morning sickness hasn't been too bad. I've had some weird cravings that I definitely wouldn't want to see coming back out."

CDR Stockland jots all the information down in the file before questioning, "LOL, I've heard plenty of odd cravings over my years as a doctor. What's your current mixture of choice?"

Mac bites her lower lip, "Ummm…Reese's cups and Sour Cream."

The LT is laughing in the background, "That is definitely one I haven't heard of before."

The doctor nods her head in agreement before inquiring, "Speaking of Harm, where is the Captain?"

Mac rambles "He got called away on an assignment. And you should have seen the look on his face when I asked him for a tub, not just a dollop, of Daisy to dunk my chocolate in. He thought I was certifiably nuts! Anyways, his mom was supposed to be here with me today, but her flight is running late. I swear I have way too many stories with planes in them this week. I guess it is my own fault for marrying a pilot, even if he is a lawyer most of the time."

The Dr. nods, "It's Ok to be a little nervous, Sarah, but this isn't your first rodeo. You should be a pro at this routine by now. Let's get you up on the table and see how everything is going. Fair warning, the gel is going to be cold."

Mac shrieks as the gel gets squirted on her mid-section, "Cold would be an understatement. I was already freezing. You guys should invest in some of those warm, terry clothes robes that the spas use for times like this."

The ultrasound technician chuckles, "Yeah, I don't see the taxpayers wanting to spring for those. This is a military hospital, not the Ritz!"

There is a knock at the door and an admin person steps in, "I'm sorry to interrupt, but there is a Mrs. Burnett out here who said she is supposed to be with Colonel MacKenzie."

Mac says, "Thank god! She's my mother in law, please send her back."

Trish walks in, leaving her suitcase and purse just inside the door, and gives Mac a quick squeeze around her shoulders, "Well, it looks like I got here just in the nick of time. How are you doing, honey?"

Mac chuckles, "Hi Mom! I'm hanging in there, just ready for the doctor here to let me know that everything is ok. Cutting it a little close there, were you? You almost missed the show."

Trish replies, "Sorry, Sarah. I promise that Harm didn't inherit his propensity for always being late from me. I'm usually the one who gets there half an hour earlier than everyone else. Unfortunately, when you put your stakes in the hands of pilots, you just never know what you are going to get."

Mac looks down at her midsection, and waves a hand over her swollen belly, as she deadpans, "Obviously."

Trish chuckles, "Honey, I don't think a hand did that, unless something drastically has changed since the last time, I got pregnant."


	23. Chapter 23

_A/N: The ultrasound is here! I hope you all enjoy the outcome._

* * *

Mac chuckles at Trish's humor. She grins, and relents, "Well, I'll agree that a hand isn't totally responsible, however it might have helped somewhere along the way."

The ultrasounds technician gasps, Dr. Stockland bites her tongue, and Trish is barely holding in her laughter.

Mac exclaims, "What? We are all women in here, and we all know how babies get here, so there is nothing wrong with discussing the ins and out of creating them. We are all fully aware that the penis has to enter the vaginal canal to fertilize an egg, but that is just so…CLINICAL. I personally prefer to discuss the more enjoyable aspects. And my husband is extremely talented in those areas, so there is plenty to relay."

Trish just shakes her head, "Honey, there are certain things I do not need to know about my son. And any of...THAT... definitely tops the list!"

Mac laughs, "Ok mom, I promise I will keep all the 'this one time at band camp' stories to myself."

Trish inquires, "Band camp? I didn't realize you played an instrument."

Everyone in the room except Trish is laughing. Trish asks, "What is so funny?"

Mac smiles, "Nothing mom. I don't play an instrument, never had the patience to learn one. But, I am buying you a copy of the movie American Pie to take home with you. Then you will understand. Although in my case, it would have been, 'this one time in law school.' I wasn't quite that adventurous, but you will get the picture."

Tish clears her throat, "Ok, now that I am thoroughly lost, can I please see my newest grandchild."

Mac smiles, "Yes, let's get on with the show." She grabs Trish's hand, "Thank you for being here with me."

Trish replies softly, "Anytime, dear. There isn't anywhere I would rather be."

LT. Mitchell keys up the machine, and starts to move the wand around. She flips on the sound, and a loud whooshing sound playing the heartbeat filters through the speakers. She pauses at a point and presses down to take some pictures. She does this a few more times and makes some notes on measurements, and a few other things, along the way. She sends the images to a printer and unbeknownst to Trish and Mac, looks sideways at Dr. Stockland with a wide smile on her face. The doctor takes the unspoken hint, they have been working together for quite a while. The doctor steps out to retrieve the enlarged photos, explaining, "I'll be right back, Colonel. I need to go grab some of the images off the printer."

Mac's concern level increases dramatically, and the hair starts to stand up on the back of her neck. In all of her previous ultrasounds, the pictures were printed straight from the machine and handed to her. Alarmed, she raises one eyebrow, and timidly asks, "Is everything ok?"

The doctor pats her hand in a comforting gesture, "Everything is perfectly fine. I'll be back in just a minute, don't you worry."

The doctor returns in record time, not wanting to keep Mac waiting in a panicked stated. She excuses the ultrasound tech so that can talk with her patient privately. She sits down on the bed next to Mac with one of the enlarged printouts.

Trish want to be there for Mac, and is also curious what is going on, but she also realizes that her daughter-in-law might prefer to be alone with the doctor. She offers, "I can wait outside if you would like?"

Mac replies, "Nope, you can come sit right over here, and hold my hand. I promise not to break it."

CDR Stockland hands Mac one of the pictures and says, "I wanted to have a bigger image so I can show you what we have going on here. That's why LT Mitchell sent the photos to a different printer."

Mac holds her breath, immediately thinking that something is wrong with either her or the baby. She puts on her Marine face, trying to brace herself for the worst news possible, silently wishing that Harm was here with her right now. She grits her teeth and says, "I'm getting a little scared here doc, so would you just spit it out please."

CDR Stockland pats her hand, trying to put her patient at ease, sensing that maybe this wasn't the best way to deliver the news. Trish gives her other hand a comforting squeeze. She exclaims, "Oh Sarah, I'm sorry. There isn't anything to be worried about. This is good news." The doctor immediately pulls a sharpie out of her pocket, and starts to circle a couple of spots of the photograph. As she is marking the images, she tells Mac, "So this is the sac for baby A, this is bubble for baby B, and this little angel over here is baby C. Your extra weight gain isn't any concern at all, in fact, you are right on target for this time in your gestation. You have three healthy little babies growing in there."

A grin as wide as a Cheshire cat's graces Trish's features.

Mac inhales sharply as she immediately jerks her hands away from the others, and tightly grips the underside of the examination table. She looks up at the doctor with wide eyes once she starts breathing again. She must have heard her wrong. She can't possibly have just shown her three different images. She inquires, "I'm sorry, what did you just say? It's a joke, right? You showed me three different images of my baby?"

Commander Stockland simply smiles. Her patient is normally extremely squared away. She isn't quite sure how to deal with the rattled Colonel before her. She reaches for Sarah's hand, which is still under the table, gives it a slight squeeze, and calmly repeats, "I said that you were going to have triplets, and they all look to be developing perfectly."

Mac immediately slides off the table not caring that the ultrasound gel is now running down her legs. She was so concerned when the doctor stepped out that she brushed away the ultrasound tech when she tried to clean it off her belly. She starts muttering to herself with Russian, Farsi, a few other foreign words, and English all mixed in. The doctor only catches bits and pieces that includes "mistake" and "kill him". CDR Stockland is trying hard not to laugh as Sarah continues pacing and having her little tirade.

CDR Stockland looks at Trish, and chuckles, "I guess the man is an over achiever."

Mac shoots her a death glare from the other side of the room, while Trish laughs, "He always has been, but I think this is a bit over the top, even for him."


	24. Chapter 24

_A/N: After spending countless hours of research, and getting thoroughly frustrated at not being able to find what I wanted, I went with this chapter. If anyone knows where to find Archives for the Navy Times, please let me know. The details contained regarding the crash and investigation are purely a figment of my imagination. My apologies if it appears a little far-fetched. I will get to Harm's reaction to Mac's news soon. I hope everyone is staying safe and healthy!_

* * *

**Naval Aviation Warfighting Development Center**

**Fallon, Nevada**

Harm gets an uneasy feeling. He glances at his watch, noticing that Mac is probably at her ultrasound right about now, and silently praying that everything is okay. He also hopes that his mother made it in time. She had left him a message that her flight was delayed due to the weather in Chicago. Why she chose to fly through there is beyond him. O'Hare airport is notorious for unpredictable weather. As close as she was going to be cutting it on time, he really wished she had just used Frank's company jet and flew non-stop. Hopefully his mother can keep Mac's nerves from spiraling out of control. He has barely had a chance to talk to Mac since he arrived here. He has been knee-deep in this blasted investigation, and he doesn't yet have the answers he needs.

* * *

_**Flashback to the day he arrived**_

"Good Afternoon, Captain Rabb," greets the Petty Officer standing at attention that meets him on the flight line.

Harm replies, "At ease, Petty Officer. Where is the Captain?"

The Petty Officer replies, "He's on the phone with Admiral Ingles, Sir. If you follow me, I will take you to him."

Harm reaches the office just as Boomer is hanging up the phone from getting his six reamed. Jonas extends his hand, "Thanks for coming, Hammer. I really appreciate it. Our former CO isn't very happy at the moment."

Harm shakes his hand, "That's completely understandable. The brass doesn't like having to explain to taxpayers how we lose multi-million-dollar aircraft. They really don't like it when they don't have answers as how it happened."

Captain Jonas replies, "At least he doesn't have to be the one to inform the wife that her husband, and father of their four children, was killed in the line of duty."

Harm sighs, flashing back to the day the Casualty Assistance officers showed up at his house. He replies quietly, "No, that is never easy. But, in some ways it is better to have that finality, instead of having hope when they are listed Missing In Action."

Boomer nods, "I know, Harm. I'm sorry, I forgot that you have been personally down this road of hell before. This accident never should have happened!"

Harm raises his voice at Boomer's implication, "Do you have new information that I'm not privy to yet that suggests what did happen? Please tell me that this wasn't a case of fighter jocks just showing off."

Boomer answers, "No! Seriously Harm, you know these guys are the best of the best. They don't make rookie mistakes."

Harm replies, "And if I remember correctly, being the best of the best, makes your ego soar as high as the plane. Makes pilots think they are invincible. You and I were both there once before our heads caught up with our talent. As I once told X-Man, there is a big difference between being great and flying smartly. If your guys were hot-dogging it, I will serve their wings, and yours, up on a silver platter to the Field Naval Aviator Evaluation Board (FENAB)."

Boomer yells, "Damnit, Harm! It was a training exercise. The two aircraft involved in the mishap were supposed to be working together to dogfight against a third fighter that was playing the role of an enemy aircraft. Similar to the incident that you and Buxton did in the real word against a Yugoslavian MiG. Yes, they were flying in close proximity, but they never should have collided. I don't know what the hell went wrong. But now, I've lost both a great man, and a plane. Just because you decided to go back and join the rest of the lawyers, doesn't mean that the rest of us quit flying."

Harm squints his eyes at his former squadron mate, and inquires, "You aren't still holding me responsible for terminating Buxton's career, are you? If that's the case, why did you request me? I definitely have more important things to be doing than leading this investigation!"

Boomer chuckles, "No way, Hammer. Buxton sunk his own dinghy. Don't forget, I'm the one who helped change your call sign after the discussion with Captain Pike about your day. Honestly, Harm, I need your skills as both a pilot and an investigator on this. I don't know anyone with your level of integrity and pursuit of the truth. I know that you went back to JAG because you had missed too many years to get promoted as a pilot. I don't want any of my guys being put through the wringer unnecessarily, and I need to know what the hell happened to cause this. And what could be more important than solving this case?"

Harm sighs, "If you must know, Sarah is having an ultrasound in a couple of days, and I wanted to be there for it. This pregnancy seems different than the others, to both of us. I just want to make sure that both she and the baby are ok."

Yeah, I heard you married your former JAG partner. He wraps his arm around Harm's neck and quietly says, "Don't worry, I won't tell any of the rest of the guys that you are shacking up with the Corps."

Harm pushes him off of him, laughing. He jokes, "Don't start with me Boomer, or I'll send the Corps after you. It's bad enough to mess with a Marine when she's unhappy, but when you add her unpredictable hormone changes to that, you might have a death wish."

Boomer laughs, "Speaking from experience, Hammer?"

Harm replies, "Let's just say I have been on the wrong side of that coin more than once. It's not a pleasant place to be. Anyways, if you will show me where I can stash my travel bag, I will get started on the interviews with the pilots and the RIO's. The sooner I can have answers, the better, for everyone."

Boomer replies, "You can leave it here for now, if you want to get started immediately. Otherwise, I can have the Petty Officer take you to your room at the VOQ first."

Harm replies, "No, I'd like to get started. I have to give the General at least a preliminary briefing later tonight. Admiral Ingles isn't the only one looking for answers."

Boomer's eyes open wide, "What's it like working for a Marine?"

Harm shrugs his shoulders, "I'm used to it. I live with one, and she doesn't cut me any slack either."


	25. Chapter 25: Restricted Access

_A/N: I promise that Harm's reaction is coming soon, I just need to fine tune a few things._

* * *

CDR Stockland says, "Sarah, why don't you use the restroom to wash up, get dressed, and come meet me in my office so that we can discuss how your prenatal care will differ from your previous pregnancies?"

Mac was already reeling with emotions from the news of triplets, but now she is just plain scared.

Mac's OBGYN can sense the tension rolling off of Mac in waves. She pats her hand, and says, "The first thing I need to tell you is I don't want you to be alarmed at all. You are probably between seven and eight weeks currently. Many women who carry multiple fetuses have similar pregnancy symptoms the first two trimesters as they do with singletons, minus gaining extra weight. I want you to remain calm, and carry on with your normal life, and listen to your body. Both Trisha and Matthew turned out perfect, and these three little ones will do the same. Go ahead and get dressed, and take a few moments to digest the news. When you are ready, come to my office so that I can explain the rest. I promise you; everything will be fine."

Trish glances over at her daughter-in-law and asks, "Mac, do you want me to head over to the office with the doctor, or do you want me to stay in here and help you?"

Mac lets a single tear streak down her face as she answers, "Go with Doctor Stockland, Mom. I'll be in there shortly. I just need a few moments alone to let this sink in."

Trish nods, she completely understands needing time to process.

As soon as Trish leaves the room, Mac wraps the hospital gown around her further, and lets out a few more tears. Some are very happy ones, and some are very confused ones. And the ones that aren't yet falling deal with how she is going to tell her husband. She starts testing out various ways to tell him to the empty room, "Hey Honey, we're either getting a litter or a harem, do you have a preference? You know sweetie, they say that all good things come in threes. Harm, how would you feel about a three-ring circus in the house?"

Mac sighs, hoping that the right words will fall out of her mouth when he calls to figure out how things went. She chuckles to herself, 'Knowing our luck, we will probably have the second generation of the three stooges!"

Mac slowly finishes dressing, and calming herself down in the process. She makes her way to Dr. Stockland's office and knocks quietly on the door.

The OBGYN replies, "Come on in, Sarah, and have a seat."

Mac takes the seat next to her mother-in-law, and Trish reaches over to grasp her hand. Mac lightly squeezes back, finding comfort in the fact that even if it isn't her husband's hand, it is the woman that raised him. If it were Harm's hand, she might consider breaking it at the moment, so it's probably better he isn't here.

Dr. Stockland speaks quietly, not wanting to alarm her patient any further. She grabs a few pamphlets from her desk, and lays them out in front of Trish and Mac. She explains, "As a precaution, regardless of your age, we consider multiple pregnancies higher risk."

Seeing Mac's features pale slightly, she emphasizes, "This does not mean that anything is wrong. We just like to keep a closer watch on you and the little ones to ensure everything is progressing naturally. I will need to see you a little more frequently than you probably saw your doctor when you were pregnant with Matthew or Trisha. For now, I will see you every three weeks, but as we progress into your second and third trimesters those visits will become bi-weekly and then weekly. There are also a couple of specialists that I want you to decide on before we get to your third trimester, a perinatologist and a neonatalogist.

Mac gives her a confused look.

CDR Stockland explains, "A perinatologist is an obstetrician who specializes in higher risk pregnancies. A neonatologist may need to be consulted if you end up having preemies, which is very common in multiple birth pregnancies. You probably won't carry to full term, the average with triplets is usually around thirty-three weeks. We will also probably deliver them via a C-section. This is safer for both you and them. Don't be concerned right now about them coming early, we will cross that bridge a little further down the line. You are in luck. I am already a certified perinatologist, but I do want you to find a neonatologist that you are comfortable with also." She hands Mac a sheet of paper, "Here is a list of the ones that I would recommend, but you can find your own if you don't think any of these are suitable to your needs."

The doctor chooses not mention that with the size that Trisha and Matthew were when they were born, it is likely Mac will need to be induced earlier than the average. Harm and Mac have previously had rather large and healthy little ones, partially influenced by their height and Mac's fondness of Beltway Burgers.

Mac is slowly taking everything in. She asks, "What about diet and exercise?"

CDR Stockland says, "I will write you a prescription for standard prenatal vitamins, and an iron supplement. I want you to eat approximately three to four thousand calories a day. A good combination of proteins, dairy, vegetables, and grains, and limit your sugar intake. You will probably need to eat about five times a day, three regular meals and a few snacks in between."

Mac's eyes go wide, wondering if she will ever be able to gain her figure back after this pregnancy. She laughs, "Oh, Harm is going to love this! He already claims I eat more than I should, and he doesn't know where I store it all. I can just see the look on his face when I tell him the doctor ordered me to have a juicy steak!"

Both the doctor and Trish laugh with her.

The doctor continues, "As for exercise, you can do what you want for now. However, as you gain more weight, you may find that cardio is a bit taxing, and you might become winded very quickly. Some good alternatives will be walking, swimming, and a yoga class designed specifically for those who are expecting."

Mac laughs out loud! She replies, "There is no way in hell that I am taking a yoga class! I have no desire to have people see me trying to make the shape of a tree, a half moon, or anything that resembles a downward dog. I would be the butt of jokes for forever. Swimming and walking I can handle!"

CDR Stockland folds her hands together on her desk, "That's about it. Unless either of you have any questions?"

Mac bites her lower lip, not really wanting to ask the next question in front of her mother-in-law, "Umm..what about sex?"

The doctor answers, "As long as you feel up to it, having intercourse is perfectly fine. You may have to experiment with a few different positions to find what is comfortable for you. Anything else?"

Mac supplies, "Not at the moment, but I am sure after I talk with Harm that we will have some, or at least he will. That husband of mine is over-protective by nature, but gets a thousand times worse when I am pregnant. It wouldn't surprise me in the least if he buys out half a bookstore on anything related to multiple pregnancies."

Everyone stands up, and the doctor hands Mac her card, "My cell phone is on there. Feel free to call me at any time. If you experience any issues and need to see me, just come on in and we will fit you in. Otherwise, enjoy your pregnancy and I will see you in three weeks."

Mac and Trish both reply with a "Thank you."

As they walk out of the hospital, Trish glances over, noticing how shocked Mac is, and offers, "Sweetie, why don't you hand me the keys, and let me take you to lunch. After all, you have a group of little ones inside you to feed."

Walking through the parking lot, Mac places her hand over her jacket pocket, containing the photographs of her three little ones tucked inside. As she slides into the seat of her car, now that the initial shock has diminished, she examines the photographs more closely. The first photo contains a picture of the three of them. She traces a single finger around each of her babies, vowing to herself to keep them safe and healthy. She doesn't even notice the tears that are running down her face, until she notices a wet drop when she is looking at the individual picture of Baby B. She gently dabs the wet spot with a tissue, and smiles.

Trish glances over at her, "Mac, they are beautiful. Just please tell me that you aren't going to chop off any of Harm's errr… parts. I'm a little old to raise five children."

Mac chuckles, "I won't say that the thought didn't cross my mind, briefly. But, these children are a product of our everlasting love, and he didn't do this by himself. So, I guess I can't totally blame him. However, I might consider cutting off his access to that section of my body for the rest of his natural life. Or at the very least limiting what parts of his body are allowed near there."

Trish offers, "Well dear, you could always get a hysterectomy or ask him to get a vasectomy."

Mac smiles softly, "No, I don't want to interfere with Mother Nature's plan. I just might have to intervene with her schedule though. Let's go to lunch."


	26. Chapter 26: Perfect Aim

_A/N: And here's the part you have been waiting for. I know it's bad that she is telling him over the phone, but Mac isn't good at keeping things from him. He usually knows when something is bothering her. I hope you enjoy it!_

* * *

Harm calls the house that evening to find out how everything went at the doctor. He is slightly surprised when his mom answers the phone instead of Mac. He figures that Mac must be resting, but that would be unlike her at dinnertime. Immediately, he is on high alert. He starts rambling his jumbled thoughts, "Hi Mom. How was your flight? How did everything go at the doctor today? How are the kids? Where is my wife?"

Trish laughs as she tries to keep up with him before responding, "Hello, darling. My flight was ok, but I got in later than expected. Mac was already in the room for her appointment when I finally got to Bethesda. I was able to be with her for the ultrasound. Mac's a little out of sorts, but she didn't want to talk about all of it yet. We went out to lunch, and picked up the kids. She asked me if I could watch the kids for a little bit while she went to take a bath. The kids are currently finishing their grilled cheese sandwiches, and just so you know, Matthew informed me that I make them the right way. I didn't want to question her, and she really looked like she needed a little down time. I will go check on her in just a little bit."

A thousand thoughts start running through his head, none of which are good. He is cursing the fact that he wasn't with her today. He practically yells, "Mom, let me talk to her, NOW!"

Trish tries to placate her son by quietly telling him, "Darling, she wasn't crying so I don't think it's anything bad. I think she is just overwhelmed."

Harm is having none of the coddling. He needs reassurances for himself that Sarah and the baby are alright. He starts again, "Mom...go get her, NOW!"

Trish knows how Harm gets when he is concerned. His stubbornness matches her own. She relents, "Talk to the kids for a minute while I go check on her." She calls into the living room, "Trisha, Matt, your Dad is on the phone."

Harm isn't even going to question right now why they are eating in the living room instead of the dining room. That is definitely not something that him and Mac encourage. His children come bounding into the kitchen as Trish puts the phone on speaker so they can both talk to him. She tells the children, "You guys talk to Dad for a few minutes while I go get your Mom."

Trisha and Matt start telling Harm everything that has been going on the past few days. He tries to listen to everything while worriedly pacing in his hotel room waiting for word on his wife.

Trish goes upstairs and knocks on the bathroom door where she hears quiet sniffling coming from inside. "Sarah, honey, Harm is on the phone."

Mac leans her head against the bath pillow in the tub and sighs, "Trish, tell him I will call him back later tonight."

Trish calmly states, "I'm sorry dear, but I don't think that is going to work. I made the mistake of telling him I was concerned about you, and he is demanding to talk to you now. I sidetracked him with the kids for a few minutes so that I could come get you, but you know that isn't going to work for very long. He's having a hard time keeping it together at the moment."

Mac frustratingly starts to get out of the tub muttering under her breath, "I don't want to talk to him right now." She says a little louder, "I'll be down in just a few."

Unfortunately, Trish heard the first part also and now she is concerned as well. Whatever is going on can't be good. The doctor didn't say anything that should have caused Mac to be feeling this way. She will have to see if she can get Mac to open up a little about her feelings later tonight after the kids are in bed. However, if anyone can get Mac to talk, it's Harm. She tells Mac, "Do you mind if I take the kids to a movie to give you and Harm some time to talk?"

Mac steps out of the bathroom in her robe. She gives her caring mother-in-law a hug, "Thank you, that would be great. I'm fine, my emotions and thoughts are just running on overdrive."

Trish eyes her warily. Mac gives her a small smile and says, "I promise, everything is fine."

Trish releases her embrace and tells her, "I'll go get the kids ready while you get dressed."

Trish heads back downstairs and smiles as she hears her grandchildren still talking animatedly with their father, and Harm barely being able to get in a word in edgewise. She tells the kids, "Ok you two, tell Daddy good-bye and go get your coats. Your mom said I could treat you guys to a movie tonight."

Matthew, absolutely ecstatic, begins racing away from the table and shouts "Good-bye Dad" over his shoulder.

Trisha looks at her Grandmother like she is totally off her rocker, quirking her eyebrow just like her mom. She asks, "Mom said we could go out to a movie on a school night?"

Trish simply smiles. Her granddaughter already has those Marine instincts honed to a tee. "Yes, she wanted me to be able to spend some time with you guys."

Trisha thinks about this for a moment before agreeing. She isn't buying the answer her grandmother gives her, but she isn't going to look a gift-horse in the mouth either. "Ok, I guess I will talk to you later Dad, I love you." She turns to her grandmother and asks, "Can we go watch the new dragon movie?"

Trish tells her, "As long as your mother doesn't think Matthew is too young for it, yes we can."

Mac walks into the room and quietly tells Trish, so that Harm doesn't hear her yet, "Nah, Matt will be fine, he loves Toothless."

Harm chimes in from the other end, "I love you too sweetie, have a good time with your Grandma." He then adds, "Mom, have a good time with the kids, and please don't let them eat too much junk."

Trish waits until both the kids are in the other room, depresses the speakerphone button, and then quietly says, "Good luck darling, I really hope that everything is ok with you and Sarah."

Harm sighs, "Me too, Mom. Is she there yet?"

Mac comes to the phone, and very quietly speaks, "Hi, Harm."

Harm immediately wishes he was there to there to wrap his arms around his wife. She sounds so lost and alone right now. He hesitantly asks, "Baby, what is going on?"

"Hang on, Harm. Let me tell the kids and your mom good-bye, then I will tell you everything," Sarah explains. "Matthew, Trisha, come give me a hug and kiss good-bye."

Harm is inside his hotel room, pacing as he impatiently waits. In the time he has waited for her to come to the phone, his mind has wandered through all the worst-case scenarios and how he will best be able to help her and stay strong for both of them. Now that he has heard her voice, he is slightly less concerned, but he is still rather worried. She sounds so sad, but she isn't crying, so it can't be that bad. It isn't all that often that she lets her Marine façade slip this much, especially in front of people other than him. He hears the door close at his residence and braces himself for whatever news she will be imparting.

Sarah waits for the car to start before she heads back to the kitchen and sits down with an audible heavy sigh.

Harm sits down on his bed and quietly asks, "Sarah, what is wrong? What did the doctor say? Are you alright? Is the baby alright?"

All Harm initially hears is Sarah starting to sniffle on the other end. He jumps up and exclaims, "That's it! I'm calling the General, and asking for the first transport home. He can send someone else out here to finish the case."

Sarah finally finds her voice. "No Harm, don't do that. I'm fine, just a little overwhelmed. And the babies are fine too."

Harm is not going to be dissuaded. He is still extremely overprotective of his wife. He continues rambling, "You need me home. I'm sure the General can find someone to take over, I have the majority of the interviews done already, I just don't have the final missing piece of the puzzle. Someone else can finish this. I need to be home for you, and we will get through whatever we have to, together. We can go see the doctor and figure out what our next course of action will be." All of a sudden, her words begin to register, "Wait, you said fine, and did I hear you say babies?"

For the first time she was given the news, Mac really starts to smile. That silver tongue her husband uses all the time in the courtroom sometimes comes through at home, at the most unexpected times. Her Sailor is so cute when he gets on a rant. She can just picture him pacing the room, running his hand through his hair, making it stand up in all directions. If he still has his uniform shirt on, he has probably undone the buttons at the cuff and rolled his sleeves up. She waits for him to pause so that she can get a word in edgewise. She giggles, "Yes, Harm, I said babies, as in more than one."

In that instant, his heart relaxes, and his blood pressure starts to return to a somewhat level state. He has been running on pure adrenaline since he first called the house to find something wrong. He sits down on the bed happily, and lets all the air rush from his lungs. He is inwardly smiling that his intuition about this pregnancy being different than the first two was correct. He chuckles, "So I guess now wouldn't be a good time to tell you 'I told you so'? It's ok that we are having twins, Bud and Harriet went through this and everything was just fine."

Even though she can't see it, she knows his flyboy grin is firmly in place. That cocky aviator still shows through every once in a while. She rolls her eyes at his 'I told you so' comment, not willing to let him have the upper hand. Instantly deciding to put him back in his place, she mysteriously adds, "Try again, Sailor."

Harm laughs, "What? I did tell you that this pregnancy was not seemingly like the other two, and you didn't believe me. You just don't want to admit that I was right!"

She relents, "True, I will concede that you were correct on that point."

Harm mentally places a mark in the win column for the Navy, grinning at his victory! He thinks, 'wait a minute, she gave in too easily there, what am I missing?' He questions, "You don't think we can handle twins? Together, we are an unstoppable team, it will be easy!"

Mac chuckles at his bravado before realizing the ego boost she is about to give him. "Oh, I fully agree we are the Dynamic Duo. However, you are one short there, Squid."

Mac hears the phone fall to the floor on the other end. "Harm, are you still there?...Harm?" One mark in the victory column for the Marines. She really hopes he hasn't pulled a Tiner and passed out on the floor. She will give him a few minutes before she calls the hotel for a wellness check.

Harm picks up the phone and ekes, "Sarah, are you trying to tell me that we are having triplets?"

Mac sighs, "Oh Flyboy, I knew you let missiles chase you, but I had no idea that you could shoot them perfectly as well."


	27. Chapter 27: The Shed

_A/N: I sincerely hope nothing like this would ever happen to our fighter pilots in real life. However, I have noticed that as technology improves, the older things tend to go by the wayside. There are several kids these days who don't know how to read a manual clock, they just rely on the digital one on their cellphone or have Alexa or Siri tell them what time it is. Hopefully, a situation never arises when they might need to know those things._

* * *

It has been a week and a half since Mac delivered the news of the triplets to Harm. He came home a couple of days ago, and his mom just left this morning. The kids were spending the night with Bud and Harriet, and it was their first night alone in a few weeks.

* * *

_*****Flashback****_

The investigation had been hell on Harm. Him and Admiral Ingalls had definitely mended fences after their first encounter, when he was defending Skates, and Harm had stood toe to toe with him requesting the ships' records in his attempt to save her career. Harm had nothing but the utmost respect for the man; he was firm, but fair. He also owed him his life, after a combination of Mac's intuition and at the time Captain Ingalls' ability to trust in that faith to send the search and rescue aircraft to where Harm was drifting in the frigid Atlantic. Therefore, he really hated having to explain to him how a pilot lost his life, the Navy lost a multi-million-dollar aircraft, and how the Admiral would have to decide if the other pilot should be brought before a Field Naval Aviator Evaluation Board (FENAB). Yes, part of the mishap was an accident. The planes were flying in tandem chasing the fighter, the flight leader took a hard-right turn to engage the bogey, and the less inexperienced pilot, his wingman, mistook it as a left turn when he also went to engage the enemy plane. Their wings collided, and sent the lead plane plummeting to the earth.

Harm would have chalked the whole thing up to an accident until the RIO of the surviving pilot admitted that his driver didn't understand the difference between ten o'clock and two o'clock. Apparently, the kid had relied on digital timepieces his whole life and didn't understand what the hell was being relayed to him. You would have thought he would have been taught that in flight school, but how he ever managed to get to Top Gun not knowing those things was beyond Harm's imagination. According to his RIO, the pilot had always assumed that when they said "Bogey on your six" it just meant his behind, because they always referred to "butts" as "sixes" and he never made the correlation of it having to do with six o'clock. The only upside to this whole damn thing was that it had happened ashore on a training incident. If it had happened in a real combat situation, it could have been a lot worse. Harm couldn't bring charges against the kid for stupidity, but he surely could for destruction of property.

Harm was livid with Boomer too. As a Commanding Officer, Jonas should have made sure those guys were thoroughly prepared before they went up to try fancy maneuvering. Boomer begged off as having no knowledge because the pilot's regular RIO wasn't at Top Gun so he had no way of knowing. It would be up to Admiral Ingalls whether Boomer would be flying a desk for the remainder of his career. All Harm could do was report his findings to the convening authority, and let them decide what to do about it. Still, he hated being responsible, even indirectly, for grounding pilots that had potential. He knew what it was like to lose your wings.

He had been in a pretty somber mood that first night home. His eyes lit up when he walked in the door and the kids came running to hug him, but both Mac and his mom could tell by his stance that all wasn't right in his world. He didn't want to talk about it, so Mac consoled him the best way she could. After all, a few weeks away from her husband had her missing him physically just as much as she did emotionally.

_*****End Flashback*****_

* * *

They retire to their bedroom for the evening, and Harm wraps his arms around Mac from behind, lightly rubbing her belly, "I still can't believe we are having triplets."

Mac sighs as she leans back into his embrace, enjoying his gentle touch. She can't feel his smile, but she knows it is there, "Harm, you can wipe that cocky grin off of you face right now! You do realize that we're going to have to move?"

He rests his head on her shoulder, "No, we aren't."

Mac turns around in a huff, "Yes, we are! We don't have enough room!"

Harm grumbles as he starts to strip his pants off, "Sure we do. We have an office, a guest room, a rec room, and a full basement. Any of the above can be converted into a nursery."

Mac exclaims, "We are not putting the nursery in the basement! And Trisha and Matthew aren't moving down there either. I want ALL of my children on the same floor as me."

Harm, trying not to infuriate his wife further, suggests, "Maybe we could move the playroom into the basement. Besides, part of the reason that we chose this house was because of the land. We have more than ten acres to build on. We can just expand our current house. I did turn a former warehouse into my loft you know. I'm pretty handy with the power tools."

Mac isn't in the mood to be placated, "Not happening! You do not have time to do the renovations. In just a few short months, these three little ones will be here."

Harm sighs, "I know that the time will fly by, but we have plenty of time before they get here. If you are dead set against me doing it, we can draw up some plans of what we would like, meet with a contractor and hire someone to do it."

Mac isn't happy with this either, "Harm, I don't want the kids around a construction zone for months on end."

Harm walks over and puts a comforting hand on her shoulder in an attempt to calm her down a little, "Mac, it won't take that long. We can take a couple of weeks and go out to La Jolla and enjoy the sun, sand, and beach. I'm sure that Mom and Frank would love to have us. They can't resist any opportunity to spoil their grandchildren."

Mac shies away from his touch, and turns to glare at him with her hands on her hips, "You think you are going to get me in a bathing suit in public when I look like a beached whale? You have got to be kidding me!"

This is not how he wanted to spend their first night alone together. He lowers his voice several notches as he wraps his arms around her, "You didn't like look a beached whale when you were pregnant before. In fact, you were so beautiful with your bronzed round belly, glowing complexion, and captivating smile, that I practically had to carry a baseball bat with me at all times to keep other men away."

Mac still wants to argue, but it's very hard when he uses his bedroom voice with her and says sweet things. She buries her head in his shoulder, "Well I'm not going to have a round belly this time around, I'm going to be FAT! And it's all YOUR fault!"

Harm lifts her chin up so that she is looking at him as he whispers, "Sarah, listen to me. You will never be fat, regardless of how much weight you do or don't put on, you will always be beautiful."

Mac gets lost in his eyes for a moment, before pushing him away with a "Hmmph" as she makes her way to the bathroom to brush her teeth. She hears Harm start to get settled into bed and she calls out, "Hey Harm, when you are drawing up those plans for the renovations, make sure you add a shed."

Harm furrows his brow and replies, "A shed? Why? We already have one."

Mac spits her toothpaste out, "Yeah, but it's not big enough."

Harm, even more curious now wondering what the hell needs to fit in the shed, inquires, "Big enough for what?"

Mac finishes rinsing her mouth, and steps out of the bathroom as she deadpans, "A bed."

Harm looks at her like she has lost her mind, "Why would I want to put a bed in the shed?"

Mac slides into bed, and straddles his hips, placing her hands on either side of his chest. She looks him directly in the eye and gives him a wide smile, "Because, Sailor, if you ever put me in this predicament again, that is precisely where you will be sleeping!"

Harm brings his hand to her back, and starts running lines from her shoulder to her six with his fingertips, gently caressing her. He replies, laughing, "Well, I guess that means I better take advantage of the next few months then. I should get in while the getting is still good, since I can't currently make you any more pregnant that you already are."

Mac quirks her eyebrow at him and smacks him on the bicep, "While the getting is good? I thought I was always good."

Harm lowers his voice again, "Sarah, you are amazing. You are always amazing. I only meant that I should maximize my chances now before you threaten to cut me off from those types of activities. Since after you give birth, I have a feeling you aren't going to let me anywhere near there without some form of shield."

Mac sits back on his thighs, "Ha! You think we are going to have any energy for activities like that when we are trying to feed and change three newborns at all hours of the night? Not to mention chasing after the other two whirlwinds we already have."

Harm looks her up and down seductively before sitting up and gently nibbling on her ear as he whispers, "I can always find the energy to indulge in my beautiful wife."


	28. Chapter 28

Mac shifts positions so that she is laying next to Harm with her back to him. Harm spoons up behind her and wraps his arm around her waist. She leans back against him and inquires, "How can you possibly say I'm beautiful? In another couple of months, I am going to get as big as a blue whale, or an elephant, or Jupiter!"

Harm chuckles, as he kisses the top of her head. Sometimes they engage in the most whimsical pillow talk. "Jupiter, Mac? I think that is a bit of an over-exaggeration."

Mac spins around at him, thoroughly exasperated, "No it's not! Do you have any idea how big I am really going to get? You thought you didn't have enough rack room on a carrier? We are going to need another bed just to hold me and the babies. There will be absolutely no room for you!"

Harm replies, "I'll be fine, Mac. I've slept in cramped places plenty of times in my life. And I'll have an extra bed in the new big shed for when you really want to get rid of me."

She smacks him square in the chest. He utters a rather unapologetic, "Sorry."

Harm can't help laughing at his wife's absurdity. He asks, "Marine, are you pouting?"

She puffs her lower lip, and lowers her eyes, "Maybe. Are you going to tie my shoes when I can't see my feet anymore?"

Harm nods, "Don't I always?"

Mac timidly asks, "You aren't going to trade me in for a younger, skinnier, prettier model when the only clothes that fit me are yours?"

Harm shakes his head, "Not a chance, Sarah. You are stuck with me forever. And I think you look quiet sexy in my clothes."

She says, "How can you possibly be so calm about this?"

Harm lifts her chin and gives her a soft, tender kiss as he lightly caresses her tummy. "What can I say? You are glowing, you are beautiful, and best of all you are mine. These little ones were conceived by our love, and I honestly couldn't be happier. I have everything I need right here in my arms, except for the two children we already have. I love you, and the kids, and these little ones that aren't already here yet, and I will always be here for all of you."

Mac whispers against his lips, "Promise?"

Harm closes the distance, and kisses her with a little more fervor. When he breaks away, he says, "I promise, now turn back around and just relax."

Mac obliges, slowing turning in his arms, and brushing up against him in the process.

Harm groans at the slightest contact. He would really love to take advantage of their night alone, celebrating the news of the three little ones, and make slow love to her. But that isn't what she needs right now, and this needs to be about her. She obviously has been carrying not just the weight of their three unborn children in her tummy, but the weight of the world on her shoulders as well. He starts lightly kneading her shoulders, and he can feel all the tension that she has been holding inside. He moves his left hand to the spot where her shoulder meets her neck and applies a bit more pressure, causing her head to tilt a little to the side. He starts caressing the exposed part of her neck on the right side with just the tip of his fingers. He always has the magic touch, and it is sending a shiver straight down her spine.

Mac moans, and unconsciously presses her six against his crotch, lightly rubbing against him. Harm scoots back a little, breaking off the contact, continuing to massage her neck. She protests, "Harm?"

He leans over and kisses the back of her neck, "Shh. Just relax baby."

Mac pulls away from his tender ministrations, a bit miffed. She flops over, frustrated, and looks into his eyes, "I thought you wanted to 'get in while the getting was good.' Don't you want to make love to me?"

Harm looks at her with all the love he feels for her emanating from his eyes, "Sarah, there is not a second of any day that I don't want to make love to you. But right now, I want you to let me take care of you. You have been doing everything by yourself the last couple of weeks."

She objects, "Your mother was here to help. Now that your mom has gone home, and the kids aren't here either, I would really like to enjoy some quality alone time with my husband. And the best way you could help me relax is to relieve all of my tension."

Harm quirks his brow at her questioning what tension she needs resolved.

Mac sits up, and pulls her nightgown off, tossing it behind her. She then lays flat on her back and brings her hands to her breasts. She slides one hand down the front of her panties and whispers, "Fine, if you aren't willing to resolve all my tension, I'll just have to take care of matters myself."

Harm is completely torn between wanting to watch his wife pleasure herself, or whether he wants to take care of it for her. Both options are going to have him harder than steel. He places his hand over the one she has underneath her underwear, and guides her hand to her nub. Together, they move their hands over her bundle of nerves, as he leans over and swirls his tongue around her areola being careful not to touch her nipple. He knows how sensitive her breasts can be when she is pregnant, even in the early stages. Mac is lightly pinching her other nipple in between her thumb and index finger. Harm's mouth moves from her breast up her neck to just below her ear where he whispers, "How about I draw a bubble bath for two, and we can continue this in there?"

Mac nods her head, as she moans, "I want this one first, then we can go in the tub, but you have to promise to continue helping me to relax.'

He places his mouth over her ear, sucking the lobe between his teeth as he presses her finger in circles against her swollen bud. He slides one finger through the side of her panties, and slides it into her wet channel, He uses long soft strokes with his measured and deliberate moves, letting her set the pace. When she starts pushing fast circles against her nub, Harm adds another, and begins plunging his fingers in and out of her at a faster pace. He can feel her muscles clenching around his fingers from her impending orgasm, and he curl them just right for her to scream out "Harm" as she convulses around him. He continues to stroke her lightly from within, her wet juices evident on his digits, until she comes down from her high. She wraps her arm around his neck, "Thank you, Harm. That felt so great. I love you."

Harm replies against her lips, "I love you too," before he invites her in a sensual kiss. "I'll go prepare the bath, and come get you when it's ready."

Mac sleepily smiles, "Ok."

Harm says, "Sarah if you just want to go to sleep, we can take a bath in the morning."

She sits up, and sasses, "No way, Sailor. While a little of my tension has been resolved. You have a straight up problem that needs to be remedied, and I want to assist."


	29. Chapter 29: Envy

Harm and Mac arrive at work in Falls Church after a well-rested weekend. They had a fantastic evening to themselves, courtesy of Bud and Harriet. Harm had every intention of thoroughly pampering his wife, but she definitely had other plans. He finally decided that resistance was futile, and they spent hours making love both in and out of the bathroom. Considering she didn't complain about tension anymore he considered his mission accomplished.

* * *

They spent their Sunday with the Roberts' family in Rock Creek Park complete with a picnic and a playground. The adults took turns watching over the other families' children while each couple got a stroll hand in hand along the trails with their spouse. This was much nicer than when Harm and Mac used to go running together along these paths. Today wasn't a competition or a race, it was just two people deeply in love intertwining their fingers and enjoying the peacefulness of the moment. Harm and Mac also shared their news of the triplets with Harriet and Bud, but swore them to secrecy until they had a chance to inform their respective Commanding Officers. It was the perfect day.

While Harm and Bud were over pushing the older kids on the swings, Harriet took advantage of the time to catch up on some girl talk. She gushes, "I can't believe you are going to have triplets. It was crazy enough when I was pregnant with twins, I can't imagine adding another."

Mac chuckles, "You? _**I **_still can't believe I am going to have triplets. However, Harm was over the moon."

Harriet laugh, "I can only imagine the shit eating grin he had on his face when you told him the news! Bud was going on and on about it when we went for our walk. I'm not sure if he was more excited than I was or just in awe."

Mac gasps, "I don't know if Harm had a smile on his face, as I had to impart the news over the phone, but the line definitely went silent for a few moments. Oh No! Bud isn't suffering from performance anxiety again, is he?"

Harriet inquires wide-eyed, "What?"

Mac smiles in memory, "Don't you remember shortly after AJ was born when Bud and I went to the carrier to prosecute LT Buxton. He was so in awe. Not only of Harm, but of all the various personnel that had combat roles when he was just a 'legal weenie.' He didn't feel that he was playing an important enough role. And you guys were 'very tired' for spending sleepless nights with the baby and hadn't been together in the biblical sense for a while.

Harriet smiles. "Did I ever thank you for intervening? We had a wonderful weekend in that little hotel room in Richmond."

Mac replies, "No, but I already got my thanks when you made the call to the carrier. And please don't take this the wrong way, but I really wasn't thrilled with Bud having that conversation with me. You and I talking about our personal lives is a little different than members of the opposite sex doing it. Especially when one of them is a superior officer to the other. I wish you could have seen the look on Harm's face when Bud politely asked him to leave. That was all the gratitude I needed."

Harriet turns red, "I completely understand that Ma'am. Although I have to say I'm kind of surprised he confided in you at all. As for your husband, I can just imagine, I bet it was priceless."

Mac giggles, "You have no idea! I wish I'd had a video camera. He was offering Bud a hop in an F-14 and Bud was completely ignoring him, thoroughly immersed in his conversation with you. Harm went from cocky fighter pilot to zero in two seconds flat. And Bud using me as a sounding board for relationship advice with you started before you two ever even starting dating. I read him the riot act for not asking you out quicker than he did. He always kept it in very broad terms though."

Harriet gives her a warm smile, "I never knew that, I'll have to tease him about that one day! Thank you for assistance in getting us together, then. As for Harm, he usually never showed his arrogant side with me. Confident, maybe, but he was never really a jerk. Not too many men would have wheeled me around the bullpen. I did see him act that way with others though. You have definitely mellowed him since you guys have been together."

Mac shakes her head, "I don't know about that one. My colleagues on the bench would definitely disagree with you. He still pulls theatrics in the courtroom every so often. I'm just glad it's not against me anymore."

Harriet laughs, "I can understand why. Bud was livid the last time he squared off against the Captain. Harm pulled a rabbit out of his hat that had him doing research for hours. The only bright side was that he made Lt. England stay and assist him. If I were him, I would rather done the research myself and spent extra hours in the office than deal with her."

Mac laughs, "I didn't realize you weren't a fan of the little witch."

Harriet sighs, "I've only had to deal with the woman at professional functions, at least until I was enlisted to help her plan a Jag Field Weekend. I thought I gave up having to plan events when I went on Inactive Reserve, but when the General's wife called, I just couldn't say no. I swear that Lt. England makes Lt. Singer look like the Good Witch, and that is saying something. Is there anything she doesn't complain about?"

Mac mutters, "Apparently not! I take it you head about her little skirmish with Harm?"

Harriet howls, "Oh yes! Bud told me the night it happened. I didn't know how much of it was just scuttlebutt and how much of it was true, but I heard that he gave her the worst dressing down she will probably ever have in her career."

Mac smiles, "I didn't witness it first hand, but she disrespected a senior officer. In this case it was me she was disrespecting, and unbeknownst to her, Harm happened to be standing right behind her when she did it. I haven't seen him lay into too many people over the years. In fact, I'm positive that I've dressed down more personnel than he ever has. Come to think of it, the last person I remember him berating was Lt. Singer when she tried to cause friction between you and Bud when you bought the house and hadn't told him and he hadn't told you that Petty Officer Coates was his legal man."

Harriet chuckles, "Papa Bear protecting his territory."

Mac replies, "I don't think so, this was about more than just him defending me. He really doesn't like it when people are downright cruel to someone else or they try to cause problems with idle gossip."

Harriet teases, "That might be true, but you know at least part of it was standing up for his wife. It's kinda cute!"

Mac shakes her head at her best friend, "Don't let Harm hear you say that!"

* * *

While Mac heads to her chambers, Harm drops his briefcase and cover in his officer, and immediately goes to see PO Quinn, the General's yeoman. Once he has an appointment with the General secured for the end of the day, he heads to the break room to get a cup of coffee.


	30. Chapter 30: Kung Something or Other

_A/N: In this story, the content of the episodes of Ice Queen/Meltdown never happened, but I am borrowing a character from that time. Harm only has vague knowledge of the former Major McBurney. Also, while helping a fellow author with a little research, I came across a few things that I wanted to include here as well. I own no rights to the movie mentioned therein or the stories behind the aviators. _

* * *

It's been a pretty uneventful morning for Harm. He has spent most of it going over personnel files for the new attorneys that will be rotating into HQ for the next few months. He will start next week off with introductions and teaching the first section of the rules of engagement course that he developed. He's not sure how many days he will actually get in though, as a double homicide court-martial begins next week, and he wants the new recruits to sit in and observe. Bud will be prosecuting, and Lt. Colonel McBurney is flying in from the San Diego office to defend. Admiral Morris will be presiding. The evidence against the accused is extremely circumstantial, so Bud will have his work cut out for him against the Marine that General Cresswell hand-picked to defend the Captain charged with murder.

The personnel file that does catch his attention is one Lt. Marissa Ingalls. Even though she is fairly new to the JAG Corps, she has excellent fit reps and appears to be a rising star, graduating in the top 1% from the University of Virginia law school. Her biographical information makes Harm's eyes go wide as he notices that she is the daughter of his former CO, Tobias Ingalls. He finds it rather ironic. He just spoke to the Admiral a few weeks ago on his investigation of the mishap at Fallon, and Ingalls failed to mention a daughter in the JAG Corps, let alone one that was going to be assigned to a rotation at HQ. Harm will be sure to keep her on her toes, but he might have to call the Admiral and extend some good-natured ribbing at the fact that his daughter is a lawyer. If she performs well enough during her rotation here, perhaps Harm can convince the General to keep her at HQ and ship Lt. England to Reykjavik.

He notices Lt. Tiner walking across the bullpen, so Mac's trial must have recessed for lunch. Harm calls up to his wife's chambers to see if she can sneak away for a bite. Her yeoman patches him through, and she answers the phone giggling.

Her laughter is infectious, and Harm chuckles as he asks, "Just what is so funny there, Marine?"

Mac attempts to speak in between giggles, "This case I'm presiding over."

Harm teases, "Now, Mac. I thought you were supposed to judicate unemotionally."

Mac counters, "I know, I know, but I just can't help it. Besides, it isn't so much the case itself. Only the name was actually mentioned in session, I just happened to hear the story behind it."

He inquires, "Care to explain it to me over lunch?"

Mac's stomach grumbles at the mere mention of food, "Sure. I don't have to be back in court until 1330. What did you have in mind?"

Harm suggests, "I was thinking Ho's Organic Noodles, but I could be persuaded otherwise."

Mac quickly answers, "Ho's is fine, I have actually been craving some Kung Pao chicken."

Harm laughs, "Again? You just had it two days ago."

Mac banters, "What can I say? I like it, or at least the babies do."

Harm relents, "Ok, but when the little ones start Kung Fu fighting inside your stomach battling for space, I don't want to hear about it."

Mac laughs, "I've still got a few months before your children start trying to perform aerial maneuvers in my stomach."

Harm quirks his brow as he teases, "My children?"

Mac deadpans, "Yes, as I recall, it was your shot that did this."

Harm outright laughs, "Hey! I only fired one missile. I can't help that you dropped multiple targets for it to hit."

Mac ponders his rationale for a moment before replying, "Hmm, maybe next time don't use heat seekers.

Harm shakes his head, "You've never complained about my heat before."

Mac admonishes, "Harm! We're in the office. Why don't I come down to you and we can get going?"

Harm replies, "I'll meet you at the elevator."

Harm and Mac reach the ground floor and start heading to his Lexus. Mac asks, "Were you able to meet with General Creswell?"

Harm nods, "I got on his calendar for close of business today. How about you with Admiral Morris?"

Mac replies, "He's got to leave on time today so I am adjourning court a little early so that I can meet with him at 1600. I can pick up the kids after I meet with him."

Harm asks, "Do I need to move my appointment with Creswell up?"

Mac shakes her head, "Nah, I'm not worried about it. I'm the one bound by regulations to inform my Commanding Officer. You are just doing it as a courtesy, you aren't the one who is pregnant!"

Thankfully, traffic is light and they arrive at Ho's fairly quickly. Their drinks on the table and their order placed, Harm asks, "So what got you into a giggling fit earlier?"

Mac smacks his forearm, "I told you before that Marines don't giggle."

Harm quirks his brow, "I've been married to this Marine long enough to know that you, Mrs. Rabb are a big fat liar. You giggle all the time, especially when you are pregnant."

Rolling her eyes, she asks, "In all your years of flying, what is the funniest call sign you ever heard?"

Harm ponders her question for a moment before answering, "Hmm. That's a tough one, there have been several over the years. There was a Lt. Berry whose call sign was Dingle. That one was pretty good, but I honestly think the one that cracked me up the most was P.E."

She knits her brows, "P.E.? Really into physically fitness?"

Harm laughs, "No, P.E. as in Premature Ejection. He hadn't even taxied over to the runway for takeoff before he pulled the ejection handle while sitting on the tarmac."

Mac chuckles, "That's a pretty good one, but I think the witness in my case tops that."

Harm replies, "Ok, I'll bite. What's the call sign?"

Mac sports a wide grin, "Free Willy."

Harm inquires, "As in the orca whale? The one they released from captivity into the wild in the movie?"

Mac shakes her head, "No, as in he used the relief tube in flight, and forgot to zip back up until after he had deplaned and was walking across the flight deck after somebody yelled, 'Hey Daughtery, XYZ!' His RIO was cracking up laughing behind him, and once news of the incident became known throughout the squadron, he was dubbed with his new call sign." Mac internally laughs at the fact that she wouldn't even know what a relief tube is saved for the fact that she is married to a pilot.

Harm's brows go to his hairline, "Wow! That's got to be embarrassing. If I had ever done that, Skates would have never let me hear the end of it. He's lucky he didn't get charged with indecent exposure. Although I bet his CAG was laughing too hard to even think about any charges."

Mac chuckles, "It's also probably a good thing that you didn't date any women in your squadron or your call sign might have been Rabbit."

Not quite sure if he should be offended, Harm immediately goes on the defensive, "I don't run that fast! That could have been Sturgis' call sign if he was a pilot."

Mac argues, "Maybe not literally, but you definitely ran from commitment."

Harm takes her hand in his, and kisses the back of it lightly, "I was just making sure I committed to the right woman. I think I made a great choice."

Mac blushes at his compliment, "Yes you did."

Needing to get the spotlight off of his younger dating days, and also not wanting to admit that no pilot would give another pilot that call sign because they were all playboys back then, he shifts the discussion back to her court case. He states, "So, how did you hear about it? I can't think that anyone would have told the story of how he received his call sign in open court."

Mac smirks, "No, only his actual call sign came out in court. One of the other witnesses called him 'Willy' and I got curious. I just happened to overhear the conversation when some of his squadron mates were engaging in locker room talk right outside my chambers."

Harm teases her, "Were you eavesdropping on your witnesses? You aren't supposed to do that."

Mac exclaims, "I was not! They shouldn't have been talking right outside my door."

Harm continues, "I can't think they were having that kind of discussion in front of your yeoman."

Mac shakes her head, "She wasn't there. I had sent her down to grab some files for me."

As their food arrives, Harm switches topics, "Speaking of files, guess who will be coming to HQ as a new attorney on rotation next week?"

Mac gasps, "Please tell me Vukovic isn't coming back!"

Harm almost chokes on his Lo Mein, "God No! I don't think the General will ever let his set foot back in HQ as long as he is in command. This is an attorney I've never met, Lt. Marissa Ingalls."

Mac asks, "Any relation to Admiral Ingalls?"

Harm nods his head, "It's his daughter."

Mac replies, "Oh, this should get interesting."

* * *

_A/N: For anyone who isn't aware – XYZ = Check your zipper._


	31. Cat Is Out The Bag or is it The Dog

_A/N: Internet has been finicky tonight, flipping on and off like a bilge switch. Therefore, I had time to finish this chapter._

* * *

Harm and Mac return from lunch and they run into "Free Willy" just as they step off the elevator. Mac has to cover her mouth to keep from erupting in a fit of giggles. Harm leads Mac by the elbow to her chambers, shaking his head along the way. He closes the door behind them, and gives her a thorough kiss. That has become a tried and true method to get her to stop whatever it is she's doing and lose herself in him. It works great for hiccups too! When they break apart, he teases, "Try not to laugh in open court, you don't want to end up peeing your pants."

Mac chuckles, "You're right. When I am pregnant, I half wish that I was a civilian judge to have a long robe to cover up any wet spots. This uniform hides absolutely nothing."

Harm laughs, "Ha! You can complain about your uniform when you have to wear summer whites or dress whites. They are the worst possible uniforms to keep clean. One of these days the Navy might get smart and do away with them."

Mac gasps in horror, "No way! I'll have to get on any panel making decisions about the services changing uniforms. I can't imagine not seeing you in dress whites."

Harm tilts his head, "What happened to dress whites and gold wings being over-rated?"

Mac rolls her eyes, "The wings are over-rated, but they still make you part of the man that I love. But you look dashing in your whites, more handsome than any man has a right to be. And I have the added bonus of being the one to take you home every night after I watch all the other women swoon over you."

Harm taps the tip of his index finger against her nose, "You are terrible, Marine! And as far as you being a civilian judge, I somehow doubt the general public is ready for your adjudication skills. You engage in fairly swift justice. The legal system outside of the military seems to move at a snail's pace regardless of the type of case. But if you feel like wearing the robe for me, I won't object!"

Mac pushes Harm towards the door, "Get back to work. I only have six minutes and forty-three seconds before I have to reconvene court, and I need to relieve myself first so I don't embarrass anyone. Do you want me to stop by your office if I finish with Admiral Morris quickly?"

Harm replies, "No, I'll see you at home. I'm not sure if the General will want to talk about anything else when we meet. I know I requested the meeting, but that doesn't mean he won't take advantage of having my undivided attention to discuss other things."

Mac replies, "Ok. I'll see you at home later. What do you think about the kids and I making homemade pizzas for dinner?"

Harm smiles, "I think Trisha will be over the moon if you suggest it. As long as you keep the dead animal off mine, that's fine. I love you; I'll see you later tonight."

Mac gives him another quick kiss, "Love you too!"

As she heads in the bathroom, she makes a mental note to see if she still has the robe that Admiral Chegwidden gave her when they were doing mock trial prep for his Supreme Court case. Considering Harm never saw it, since he was supposed to be off sailing, it might be nice to surprise him with it one night.

Mac's meeting with Admiral Morris goes about as smoothly as she figured that it would. He too, had already suspected that she was pregnant, but was absolutely floored when she mentions that she is expecting triplets. As hard-nosed as the Admiral could be in the courtroom, he was just as much of a softie as Admiral Chegwidden when it came to children. He advises her to let him know the minute that she thinks her case load is more than she could take and reminds her to take it easy. He knows without her saying anything that triplets are automatically a high-risk pregnancy, and he will accommodate her schedule to whatever is necessary to ensure these babies arrive healthy.

She secures a little early, and heads over to pick up her offspring. It isn't too often that she gets just them and mommy time during the work week, so she will enjoy this immensely. She just has to remember to keep the flour out of Matthew's reach when they make the pizza dough. He tends to shake it in the air like a bag of popcorn and it took her hours to clean out her purse the last time he got it in there.

* * *

Harm arrives promptly for his meeting with the General. Creswell invites him in, and immediately tells him to take a seat. He informs Harm, "I wanted to let you know that Mrs. Roberts has been very helpful in helping Dora and Lt. England work through some of the logistics for the Field Weekend I ordered her to organize. However, Harriet apparently 'suggested' that while paintball would probably be good for the military folks, it wouldn't be very family friendly for younger children or any woman they happened to be expecting. Therefore, she advised that we do something with water guns either as a replacement or in addition to paintball."

Harm nods, "That makes sense. Paintball is a little vicious for children, and those balls definitely can hurt when they explode against you, even in non-vital areas. The last thing we want is a lawsuit from an injury sustained from excessive force. Not that anyone would do that on purpose, at least most wouldn't. A water gun fight would definitely be a better option that everyone could participate in."

The General asks, "So, does Mrs. Roberts comment have anything to do with your request to see me?"

Harm chuckles, "You don't miss much, do you Sir?"

Creswell purses his lips, "Not usually."

Harm supplies, "Well, you were correct in your assumption that Colonel MacKenzie is expecting. She finally had the ultrasound done, everything looks perfect, and she is allowing the cat out of the bag. She met with Admiral Morris earlier to inform him before she secured for the day. However, what everyone isn't privy to yet, it that we are expecting triplets."

The general leaps out of his chair so fast that it falls on the floor beside him. He exclaims, "Triplets?"

Harm sports a grin a mile wide, "Yes, Sir."

Cresswell shakes his head, "I bet you are pretty proud of yourself. I'll be sure to remind you of that when the three of them hit the terrible two's and you are complaining what terrors they are."

Harm grins, "Does that mean I can't call and ask you and the Mrs. to baby-sit?"

Creswell ponders this for a moment, "Sure you can send them all over. I'll have them ship-shape and shouting 'Semper Fi' by the time they come back to you."

Harm cringes, "On second thought, maybe not. I already have one mini Marine in the making and another who thinks watching dad's expression when he says 'Oo-rah' is funny. I want these three to follow in the tradition of the Navy vice the Marines."

Creswell laughs, "Well, they could all defy you both and join the Air Force."

Harm exclaims, "General!"

Creswell grins, "Sorry, couldn't resist."

Harm shakes his head at his Commanding Officer. He wasn't quite sure what to make of the bulldog when he first came to JAG, but they have developed a comradery similar to what he had with Admiral Chegwidden. It probably helps that Harm himself is not as much of a loose cannon as he used to be either.

The General adds, "You also might to consider getting the kids a puppy. One they can chase around and wear themselves out with."

Harm laughs, "Wear out the dog or the kids?"

Creswell grins, "Both!"

Harm chuckles, "I'll have to discuss that one with the Marine. I don't think she is going to give in and consent to three newborns and a puppy at the same time."

The General offers, "I'll have Dora talk her into it. The puppy gets tired and flops on the floor, and the kids get tired and flop on the dog. It gives mom and dad a little peace."

Switching back to the first topic, Harm asks, "When did you want to have the event?"

Cresswell replies, "I was thinking either the weekend before Labor Day weekend, or sometime in mid to late September. I know the ladies are still looking for a venue. Did you have a preference of dates?"

Harm answers, "Not really, Sir. I would offer part of our backyard, but not sure what state it will be in then. We are meeting with a couple construction companies to have them draft some plans for us to add a few rooms to the house and a new shed in the back. I also think that Mac is considering putting a pool. Once we have a timeline for when they could do the work, Mac and I plan to take the kids out to La Jolla for a visit with my parents for two weeks while the major construction is going on."

The General lifts his eyebrow, "A new shed?"

Harm chuckles, "Yes, my new bedroom, according to my wife."

Cresswell laughs, "What did you do to make her come up with that punishment?

Harm shrugs his shoulders, "Apparently, **I **got her pregnant with triplets! It's all MY fault. She says our bed will be too small for the two of us and the three unborn ones as she progresses in her pregnancy so I need a new shed with a king size bed for me. Hell, she'll probably put an intercom system in there too so I can bring her whatever she is craving at 0200."

The general laughs, "Nah, she'll miss you cuddling with her after the first night you spend out there. Harm, do you think she will go on Inactive Reserves when her maternity leave is up?"

Harm purses his lips, "Honestly, we haven't even discussed that at all. She was on edge for so many weeks before she had the ultrasound thinking there was something wrong that I definitely didn't want to add career decision pressures to that. I think we will just have to take a wait and see approach."


	32. The Hazards of Gardening with Kids

Harm walks into the house and immediately gets a whiff of fresh focaccia, basil, oregano, and fresh vegetables. He sets his briefcase down by the door, and hangs his cover on a hook before walking into the kitchen to greet his family. They really are doing homemade pizzas for dinner. Everything they are making is from scratch; the dough, the sauce, and almost all the toppings are straight from their garden. He walks into the kitchen to find several different choices. There is a rosemary and olive oil focaccia dough covered in banana peppers and olives that he assumes is his. There is a second rosemary and olive oil focaccia dough covered with homemade marina sauce, sausage, and pepperoni which he concludes is his wife's. There are two thin crust pizzas, one with alfredo sauce, chicken, and broccoli which is likely Trisha's, and the other one is homemade marinara sauce, loads of mixed shredded cheese, and pepperoni that should belong to Matthew. He says hello to both Trisha and Matt before making his way over to his wife to give her a proper hello with a kiss. He remarks, "Everything looks wonderful, what can I do to help?

Mac replies, "I think everything is just about prepared to go into the oven. The kids helped me bake the dough, thankfully without a flour tornado this time! I put the sauces on, and then let them choose which toppings they wanted to add. I added Banana Peppers and Olives to yours, but feel free to add anything else. Ours will take a few extra minutes to bake then theirs will as they have thinner crusts. If you are fine with what we have here, why don't you go change, and I'll put the pizzas in the oven. They shouldn't take any more than ten minutes to cook.

Harm replies, "It all looks great. I'll just change into comfortable clothes and be back down to help you set the table."

He makes his way upstairs to their bedroom remembering his surprise when Mac had agreed to letting him plant a sizeable garden in their backyard. While Harm had grown herbs in the windowsill of his loft for years, a habit he picked up after telling Mac he didn't have any plants to water when he left to go flying, he hadn't actually grown any fruits or vegetables himself until after they had moved in the house. Besides the limited space, he was just gone too often to properly take care of them. Her rationale for allowing it had been, "Eventually we are going to have kids, and you are going to force them to eat vegetables, so they might as well come from a garden that I know hasn't been sprayed with numerous insecticides."

She quickly realized that fresh fruit and vegetables from their own garden tasted much better than anything she had ever bought in the store, including organic ones. She often mixes several juices and sauces from their crop. She even found a green recipe that both her and Harm actually like. Even more surprising is that both Matthew and Trisha like to help their father with the garden. Trisha seems to thoroughly enjoy planting different seeds, watching them grow, and picking them off their stems or vines when they are ready. She loves snacking on freshly picked green beans. While Trisha helps her dad, Matthew has just finally reached the stage where he doesn't think dirt is to eat. Although him eating dirt isn't nearly as bad as the time a few months ago when Harm had to dig up and replant a section of the garden due to Matthew's antics.

*****Flashback to a few months ago*****

_Harm was showing Trisha how to pick the cherry tomatoes off the vine without pricking herself, while Matthew was sitting in the patch next to them patting dirt and then bringing up his hands to lick his fingers. Harm walked over to the edge of the garden to grab a basket for the collected tomatoes, and when he turned his back toward his kids, Matthew was standing up with his pants around his ankles, watering the seeds Harm had just planted. Trisha clasped her hand over her mouth to hide her giggles, and Matthew was swaying back and forth, laughing, making sure he watered all of what they had just packed in the ground._

_Harm admonished him, "Matthew, No!" but it was too late. He pulled Matt's pants up, and immediately picked him up and carried him into the house, handing him to Mac, "Your son just peed on my freshly planted pepper seeds." _

_Mac raised her eyebrow at him, "My son? I think you were the one responsible for potty training, not me. Did you ever happen to mention to him that he couldn't go outside?"_

_Harm huffs, "No, I didn't, but I didn't tell him he could either."_

_Mac chuckles, "He probably saw you doing it when we went camping, considering the only available bathroom was a tree or bush. Even though he was still in diapers at the time, it doesn't mean he wasn't observing what you did and learning."_

_Harm walks back toward the sliding door to go undo the damage done muttering, "Of course, it's all my fault. I wasn't the only one using a tree or bush you know!" Unfortunately, he didn't get any sympathy from his wife as she was still busy laughing while cleaning up what Matthew had managed to spray on his shorts._

_He asks, "I in trouble, Mommy?_

_Mac replies, "No you aren't in trouble, but no more peeing outside, especially on daddy's plants."_

_Matthews says, "Okay, is Daddy mad?"_

_Mac tickles Matthew's tummy, "Your father will get over it. He's still a prude sometimes!"_

_She sets Matthew down at the table with a coloring book, and ducks her head out the sliding door, watching him pull up the dirt and replant. He is sweating something fierce in his tank top and khaki shorts, but man does he look sexy as hell. She calls, "Hey Harm, should I call your mom and ask her how many times you went in the sand?"_

_Keeping his back to his wife, he walks over to Trisha, who is watering the beans and carrots, and whispers, "Sweetie, can Daddy borrow the hose for a moment?"_

_Trisha nods, and hands the hose to him, which he turns and sprays directly at his wife in her V-neck white t-shirt until it is soaked through. Mac is trying to shake the water off her arms and wring out the bottom of her shirt as Harm teases, "Mac, What was that about calling my mother?"_

_Mac grins widely before walking back in the house, "This means war, Sailor!"_

_Harm walks back over to return the hose to Trisha chuckling the whole way. He thinks to himself 'I rather liked that look on her.'_

_Trisha places her hands on her hips, and tells him, "Daddy, I think you are going to be in trouble."_

_Harm tousles her hair, "Nah, I was just helping Mommy cool down."_

_Trisha relents, "Okay," and continues to water her plants._

_Harm finishes replanting all the peppers and has a fine sheen of sweat across his face and his chest. He set the shovel down, wipes his brow with his wrist, and makes the offhanded comment that he's "Hot."_

_Trisha turns the hose and sprays it straight at her dad's chest then moves down to his shorts. He yells, "Trisha!"_

_His daughter giggles, "I was just helping you cool off, Daddy."_

_Harm walks them both back towards the house, and opens the sliding glass door calling to Mac, "Could you bring me a fresh set of clothes please?"_

_Mac comes around the corner "What's the matter?"_

_Harm groans, "Like Mother, Like Daughter. Since I cooled you off, she decided to subject me to the same treatment. Now I need dry clothes."_

_Mac smiles down at Trisha, "That's my girl. And Harm, just remember that you started it! Just go strip out of those in guest bathroom and I will bring you some fresh ones."_

*****End Flashback*****


	33. Chapter 33: Bear or Bare

_A/N: I've got a Disney thing going on this week…don't mind me. I don't own any of their characters, although I sometimes wish I did. I promise not to dress Harm up as Elsa and have him belt out Let It Go. Watching Channing Tatum do that was embarrassing enough! However, pretty much anything else is fair game. I was in need of some humor, hope my readers find this enjoyable as well._

* * *

Harm comes back down to the kitchen, dressed in a pair of khaki cargo shorts and a blue polo. He hands the kids pot holders to put on the table to set their pizza trays on and paper plates. The pot holders were handmade by Harm's grandmother. The last trip up to the family farm, Sarah had begun teaching Trisha how to make them. She wasn't able to finish one of her own before they left, that will happen on the next family trip up there. In the meantime, she loves using Great Grandma's as often as possible. Once the kids are scurrying off to the dining room, Harm whispers in Mac's ear, "Everything go okay with Admiral Morris?"

She squeezes his hand, "It went great, I'll tell you about it after the kids are in bed."

Harm nods his agreement. They both thoroughly enjoy the few hours they get to spend with their offspring after sometimes very long days at the office. At least Mac has more regular hours since she moved over to the bench. Harm's schedule has settled down too, most of the time. But he still gets called away for investigations a bit more often than he would like. They tend to focus their attention on their kids for the time that they have together as a family, and leave the more adult discussions for after the children are in bed. It works fairly well, except for when their bodies take over and conversations end up forgotten until morning. Not that either of them mind, but it has occasionally gotten them into trouble.

Harm and Mac both carry two trays each to the table and set them down on the potholders. Harm heads back to the kitchen to grab the garlic bread, a few pizza slicers, and a spatula. Mac tells Matthew and Trisha, "Do not touch your pizza yet, they just came out of the oven and they are too hot. Dad will be back in just a minute to cut them up and move them to your plates."

Harm returns with a regular pizza cutter that he hands to Mac to cut the kids' and a stainless-steel rocker blade with wooden handles that he uses to cut his and Mac's. He finds the blade much easier to cut through the thicker bread than an ordinary pizza slicer does.

Once he is finished cutting and serving, and everyone has pizza on their plates, Harm asks Trisha, "So how was school today?

Mac chuckles as Trisha responds, "It was great!"

Mac explains, "Your daughter has been going on and on about the Jungle Book since I picked her up. Her teacher is apparently reading it to them in class, and she wants to know if we can watch it tonight."

Harm looks at his daughter pointedly, "That's a no. It's a school night. In fact I'm not even sure we have a copy of that movie."

Trisha replies matter of factly, "Yes, we do, mom rented it."

Harm shoots Mac a look that clearly asks, "You caved?" Mac's response is simply a shrug of her shoulders.

Harm tells Trisha, "We don't have enough time to watch it before bath and bedtime. I also have serious doubts that the movie is suitable for your brother to be watching just yet."

Trisha whines, pleading, "Please, Dad. We don't have to watch the whole movie. We can watch just a little tonight and then some more tomorrow night. Matthew won't get scared, he likes dragons."

This time, Mac replies, "Sweetie, I know he likes dragons, but I agree with your dad, I don't think the movie is appropriate for him. I don't want to be up with him all night if he has nightmares."

Trisha pouts, knowing she will have better luck swaying her father than her mother, "But Dad!"

Harm responds sternly, "I said no young lady, and so did your mother. If you want to watch it on movie night for the one the three of us watch after Matthew has gone to bed, I'm ok with that. But we are not watching it tonight."

Trisha offers an alternative, "Can we watch the Sing-Along Version then? It's only a half hour long and Matt can sing along too. There are a bunch of other songs on there as well. I really want to see the bear and the panther and the boy."

Harm rolls his eyes, "Negotiating, already are you?"

Trisha says, "You and mom do it all the time."

Mac laughs, "She does have a point there, Harm."

Knowing he is fighting a losing battle against two pair of chocolate sad eyes, he relents, "Fine, we can watch it after you guys have had your baths in place of story time tonight."

Dinner finished, and the kids bathed and in their pajama's, the Rabb family sprawls out on the couch to watch the Sing Along video.

Matt, completely curled up in Mac's lap, starts falling asleep during the third song on the video. Harm reaches over, "I'll take him up, and then I am going to get ready for a shower."

Mac inquires, "You're taking a shower tonight?"

Harm responds, "Yeah, back is acting up a little. I thought running some hot water might ease it a little."

Mac asks, "Are you sure you want to carry Matthew upstairs then? I can handle it."

Harm leans over and kisses her, "You are carrying enough of our children right now. I can manage Matthew. It's not spasming, it's just a little stiff. I'll see you after Trisha goes to bed."

Mac smiles, and whispers, "If it doesn't help, I can give you a massage too.". She looks over to her daughter, who is dancing in front of the television to a Cinderella song, and says, "Trisha, come tell dad goodnight. He is taking Matthew up now and I'll stay down here and finish the video with you."

Trisha walks over and rolls her eyes at her sleeping brother. She makes the offhanded remark, "Leave it to a boy to fall asleep during Cinderella. They just don't know anything about good movies." She looks up at Harm, "Goodnight, Daddy, I love you. Thank you for letting me watch this tonight."

Harm ruffles Trisha's hair, "You're welcome. I love you too sweetheart. Do not give your mother any trouble tonight. When the video is done, you are to brush your teeth and get in bed."

Trisha executes a mock salute, "Yes, Sir," before turning back to her video.

Harm places Matthew in his toddler bed, and Matt only stirs long enough to wrap his arm around his Toothless plush. Harm chuckles, silently wondering if his son is someday going to design a fighter plane that resembles a dragon. Harm pulls Matt's fleece blanket sprinkled with various aircraft over him to cover him for the night and kisses his forehead whispering, "Goodnight my little Sailor," before heading to his own room to unwind.

Downstairs, Trisha has curled back up with her mother on the couch. A few songs further into the video and her eyelids are beginning to droop by the end of "I Wanna Be Like You." Mac hits the stop button on the remote for the video, and places an arm under Trisha, "Come on sweetie. Let's get your teeth brushed and get you to bed."

Trisha looks up sleepily, "Okay mom. I wish we could have watched the whole movie, but thanks for letting me watch this tonight. I really like Baloo and King Louie."

Mac chuckles, "We'll be able to watch the movie in a few days."

Mac and Trisha walk hand in hand up the stairs and finish the before bedtime routine. Trisha starts falling asleep while brushing her teeth, and Mac has to fish her toothbrush out of the sink. Mac hands her a cup to rinse her mouth out and dries off her face with a towel before leading her to her bedroom. Trisha is out like a light the minute her head hits the pillow. Mac tucks her in, kisses her goodnight, and goes to check on her sailor.

Mac furrows her brow as she closes her bedroom door behind her. She doesn't hear the shower running, but she does hear some faint humming coming from the walk-in closet. As she moves closer to the sound, the tune becomes clearer, and she pauses in the doorway laughing at her husband.

Harm gives her a flyboy grin, and inquires, "What?"

Mac shakes her head as she moves back, "Nothing Harm. And here I thought you didn't want to watch the video at all."

Harm passes by her, strutting his stuff like Baloo, removing the towel wrapped around his waist as he changes from humming to singing, "_Look for the bare necessities, the simple bare necessities. Forget about your worries and your strife._"

Mac picks up the towel, and pulls it back and snaps it against Harm's bare behind before following him into the bathroom.

She strips out of her own clothes, and closes the glass door of the shower. Harm lightly chuckles at his intruder, "You crashing my shower, Marine?"

Mac smiles, "Well Sailor, you have some bare necessities that I just can't live without."


	34. Don't Shoot The Messenger

_A/N: I really despise insomnia. It is storming to beat the band here with roaring thunder, bright lightning, and little hail pellets hitting the window next to my bed. Good news is, you all get another update!_

* * *

Mac is sprawled across the bed in an open silk robe and panty set, while her thoughtful husband massages her slightly bulging tummy and her thighs with cocoa butter. She has always moisturized before bed every evening, but she switches to this when she is pregnant in an effort to keep down stretch marks. She barely has any to show from her first two pregnancies, thanks to her great genes. However, she doubts that she will be as lucky this time so she is trying to get ahead of the curve. Harm's hands are alternating between making small circles and long smooth strokes, making sure he gets the lotion into every tiny hidden crevice.

He touches one place directly below her hipbone and she nearly kicks him in the head. He raises his eyebrow at her, and she chuckles "I'm sorry, it tickles."

Harm, feeling slightly mischievous, moves his hands over the same territory, trying to see if he can elicit the same response. He finally catches her again in the right location, and she yanks her leg back and then proceeds to wrap it around his middle. She then flips them over until she is straddling him. She raises her brow in challenge "Are you absolutely sure you want to play this game?"

His response is to pick the tube of lotion back up, squirt some in his hands, place his hands behind her, and dips them below her panty line starting his massage all over again, this time on her firm behind.

Mac leans over and rests her head on his chest, "This feels nice. You want to be my masseuse every night?"

Harm chuckles, "I though I already was. I distinctly remember giving massages when needed being included in our wedding vows. If someone else has been giving you massages, I don't want to know about it. Especially it they are doing it on your bare skin, if I hear about that I just might have to hurt someone."

Mac smiles against his chest, "The only ones other than you are those overgrown butch ladies named Alexa, Olga, and Helga at the spa your mom treats me to. Yes, they are done on my bare skin, usually with oil, but the only thing it does for me is loosen my muscles. I have a no male masseuse rule unless it's my husband."

As he begins smoothing his strokes across her back, her lower body instinctively starts rocking against his. Trying to think about anything other than the way her body is moving against his, he asks, "So what did Admiral Morris have to say?"

Hearing the name of her superior officer does the trick, Mac stops moving and just rests against Harm's chest. She smiles, "It was pretty funny actually. His eyes about popped out of his head when I told him we were expecting triplets. I haven't seen his eyes that wide since the babies' father pumped his ceiling full of bullet holes."

Harm groans at the memory. One of these days he will have to figure out how to erase that particular mistake out of the JAG database and figure out how to sprinkle memory dust over everyone who knows about it so it will stop coming back to bite him in the ass.

Mac continues, "He was extremely supportive, and told me to make sure that I took it easy, and to let him know if I was feeling off in anyway." She lifts her head to look at him with a devilish twinkle in her eye, "And much to poor Lt. England's dismay, I am under orders to start taking breaks at least once every forty-five minutes whether I feel I need to or not. He doesn't want me throwing up or fainting in the courtroom because I haven't had time to take care of myself. He told me in no uncertain terms that my health and the care of these babies comes before the speed of justice being served."

Mac can feel the laughter in Harm's chest before it actually comes of out her mouth, "Oh, she's going to love that! I guess I'd better warn the General before she starts complaining again. On the other hand, I completely agree with Admiral Morris."

Mac slides off to the side of him, and props her cheek on her open palm, "Of course you do, you're both too overprotective for your own good. So, what did Creswell have to say?"

Harm turns of his side and mirrors her position. He smirks, "First of all, we are never allowing the General to baby-sit."

Mac laughs, "Why is that?"

Harm answers, "He mentioned that we could send the kids over so that he could make them fit to defy us both and join the Air Force."

Mac drops her jaw as she exclaims, "He did not!"

Harm give her a full flyboy grin, "Actually, yes he did. And that was my reaction too. He also suggested that we get a puppy."

Mac looks at Harm like he is nuts, "Have you lost your mind?"

Harm shrugs his shoulder and playfully inquires, "What?".

Mac argues, "What do you mean, what? Don't play naïve with me, Sailor. You have clearly lost your mind. We've got two kids with three more on the way, and you want to add a bouncing ball of fluff to our already chaotic life?"

Harm replies, "Yes, it will help keep our current offspring busy. The General mentioned that the kids and the dog will be so busy chasing each other that they will all get tired and flop on the floor together."

Mac raises her brow, "You know what? You don't need to tell Cresswell about my new court schedule. I'll go see him in the morning before court starts myself. Apparently, we need to have a Marine to Marine talk!"

Harm chuckles, "Just don't shoot me, I'm only the messenger."


	35. Silence is not Golden, it's Gray

_A/N: For all those that have experienced this, I feel your pain!_

* * *

Harm is sitting at the breakfast nook with his kids when he hears a loud shriek ring out from upstairs. He quickly says, "Trisha sweetie, please watch your brother for a few minutes, I'll be right back," and runs up the stairs three at a time frantically calling for his wife, but he doesn't receive an answer.

He starts looking in the various rooms with no luck of finding her and is nearly out of breath when he reaches the master bathroom. Thankfully he finds her standing there staring into the mirror with no evidence of bleeding or bruises. He gasps, "Mac, what's wrong? You scared me half to death!"

She pushes her hair behind her ear, and pulls a single strand out between her thumb and index finger. She yelps, "This! This is what's wrong!"

Harm swallows the laugh that is bubbling inside of him as he replies, "Mac, it's hair. I don't think the world is going to collapse."

She bores her eyes into him so hard he might melt into a puddle of blood on the floor. She remarks, "It's a gray hair."

Harm shrugs his shoulders, "So…."

Mac stomps her foot and pouts her lips before exclaiming, "So? I'm barely over forty, I am not supposed to be getting gray hair yet!"

Harm deadpans, "I was around forty when I got my first one. It really isn't a big deal."

Mac looks at him like he is from another planet. Why do men not understand these things? "Yes, but on men it makes you look distinguished, on women it just makes us look old!"

Harm wraps his arms around her pulling her into a tight embrace, "There is nothing old about you."

Mac slides away from him, not wanting to be consoled at the moment. She continues her tirade, "Next thing you know I am going to get wrinkles, and my boobs are going to sag down to my knees."

Trying to wave off her insecurities, Harm chuckles before replying, "That won't happen for a while, Babe. Being pregnant with triplets you will have a built-in shelf to prevent them from doing that."

She gives him that Marine death stares and pokes him in the chest with her finger pushing him towards the door, "Get out! Now!"

Harm heads back downstairs shaking his head. He has no idea what has gotten into her. Yes, she often has mood swings when she is pregnant, but this freaking out is a whole new level for her. For all the times she used to chide him about his lack of being able to let go, she is almost as much of a control freak as he is. He would offer to stop at the store and get some hair dye if he thought it would help the situation, but he figures that would probably just make it worse. His best bet is to give her a little time and space and eventually she will realize how irrational she is being.

He reaches the kitchen and sits back down, rubbing his hand through his hair. Trisha asks, "Is mom okay?"

Harm ruffles her hair, "She's fine sweetie."

Trisha asks, "I only scream like that when I see a snake. There wasn't a snake in the house was there?"

Harm chuckles, "No honey, she just found something in her hair that wasn't to her liking."

Trisha just nods. Her parents act very weird every once in a while, and she doesn't understand why they get upset about half of the things they do. It must be a grown-up thing.

Harm finishes his breakfast and clears the plates from the table, popping a bagel in the toaster for Mac to take to work with her since she won't have time for anything else. He starts to call up to her that they need to leave in five minutes, but she is already coming down the stairs. Harm says, "Okay kids, get your backpacks and head outside. Mom and I will be there in just a minute."

He pulls the honey walnut and sun-dried tomato spreads out of the fridge holding one in each hand. Mac simply points to the honey one and he spreads it over the bagel for her and hands it to her. She merely nods her head in acknowledgement and walks to the front door to grab her briefcase and cover.

Harm places the items back in the fridge and mutely follows behind her. It's going to be one of those days where she gives him the silent treatment until she gets out of her funk. It isn't the first time and he is sure it won't be the last.

They drop the kids off and daycare and school, and Harm and Mac both give each of their children hugs. Mac smiles and tells them, "Have a great day!"

Trisha whispers in her mom's ear, "You too mommy. I don't like bugs in my hair either."

Not a word is spoken on the way to JAG. Harm thinks to himself, 'at least the General will be the one in the line of fire from her ire this morning and not me.'

He parks the SUV in his normal spot at headquarters, and comes around her side to open her door. She gives him that look of death again. He leans down and kisses her cheek, "I know you are upset sweetie, but I still love you. Try to have a good day." Her only response is grabbing her briefcase out of the car and starting her walk towards the front door.

The elevator ride up to Ops is also spent in silence. Harm heads into his office as Mac makes her way towards the General's. Bud hears Harm drop his briefcase on his desk with a loud thump just before he slams his office door. Bud returns his attention to the case file he is working for about fifteen minutes when he realizes he needs a refill on his coffee. He heads into the breakroom and makes two mugs, carries them out, and knocks on Harm's door.

Harm yells, "Enter!"

Bud walks in, finding Harm just leaning back in his chair. He extends one his arms, "Coffee, Sir?"

Harm gives him half a smile, "Thanks, Bud. I really didn't want to venture out there yet."

Bud asks, "What's wrong, Sir?"

Harm sighs, "I'm in the doghouse again."

Bud chuckles, "Let me guess, you mentioned to the Colonel the General's suggestion about a puppy?"

Harm fully smiles this time, "Yes, I did, but that was only the tip of the iceberg. I'm sure that she is in there right now giving him an earful about it. Mac found a gray hair this morning and was worried about other signs of aging, and I made a stupid remark about her pregnant belly being a shelf."

Bud laughs, "Well, Sir, it could be worse. At least you didn't say, 'Honey, you're pregnant. You're supposed to look fat.' Harriet has never let me live that one down."

Harm shakes his head at Bud's blunder, "Nope. I can honestly say I have never made that mistake. I'd be a dead man if I did. However, I think Mac looks positively beautiful when she is pregnant. She'll stew about it for a little bit and then she will be fine. I just hope it isn't too long, I really hate it when she is mad at me."

Bud looks at his former mentor, "Just remember that she doesn't have full control over her emotions right now and that it's her hormones talking, not her, and you will be fine."


	36. Where There's a Biff, There's a Way

While Harm was divulging his woes to Bud, Mac had stopped by Petty Officer Quinn's desk to request an audience with General Cresswell.

Knowing that the Colonel reported to Admiral Morris on the judiciary side of the house, the PO was a bit puzzled why she wanted to see him. Noticing the scowl on her face, and not wanting to upset a superior officer, especially not this one, he replied, "I'll buzz him right now, Ma'am." Mac sits down in the chair while awaiting an answer.

The General is not at all surprised to hear from his yeoman that Colonel MacKenzie is outside his office asking for an appointment. He thinks to himself, 'Rabb must have mentioned the puppy. Oh, this is going to be fun.' He tells the Petty Officer, "Send her right in."

Mac enters his office, and stands at attention only because it is engrained in her as a Marine. Creswell can tell by both her stance and her knitted brows that she is not in a good mood. He states, "Have a seat Colonel. I wanted to offer my congratulations on your pregnancy. I was rather surprised to hear that you are expecting triplets. You and Harm are fine parents, and I'm looking forward to see these three when they arrive."

Mac is caught slightly off guard by the General's congeniality. Her previous interactions with him don't usually involve a lot of small talk, although they do tend to offer each other a challenge every once in a while. If she was a man, Harm probably would have threatened to bring out the measuring stick shortly after the General had come on board. However, this morning she isn't in the correct frame of mind for idle chit chat or a challenge, although going out on the qualifications range right now might really help her release some pent up anger. She just isn't quite sure whose picture would fit perfectly on the bulls-eye at the moment since she is quite irate with the majority of the opposite sex this morning. With that in mind, she does realize that she needs to maintain some form of decorum with a superior officer, even if is tough. She curtly replies, "Thank you. Might I speak freely, Sir?"

The General replies, "I take it your husband mentioned my suggestion." He immediately picks up on the roll of her eyes at the term "husband." Rabb must be in hot water for something other than this. He tries to soften his normally gruff voice, "What's on your mind?"

Mac isn't taking any chances. This isn't AJ she is talking to, who once warned her that there was a fine line between initiative and insubordination. She has a feeling that bringing out the Marine Devil Dog with the General might get her charged with conduct unbecoming. Treading lightly, she asks for clarification, "Is that a 'yes, I may speak freely?'"

The General cocks his brow, fully aware that he is about to have his ass handed to him with both barrels, "Yes, Colonel. You may speak freely."

Mac begins to pace, as she speaks "I admire you, Sir. You are a by the book Marine that protects his people, and you don't mind shaking things up a bit. You also care, like your predecessor did, about the JAG family. You make sure that wrongs are righted." She pauses as she stares him straight in the eye, "However, what goes on in **MY** house and **MY **marriage should not be your concern unless it is in some way affecting the way my husband does his job. I will consider your suggestion of a dog, not necessarily a puppy. And if you even mention the Air Force or Army to my children, I may have to whip your butt on the pistol range, again, Sir. Please keep in mind I have a lot of extra oomph now carrying these three future Marines!"

The General drops his jaw, and then bursts out in laughter. This was definitely not the reaction that Mac was expecting. She inquires, "Is something funny, Sir?"

The General just chuckles, "I hear you loud and clear, Colonel. Your position is understood. Now, please resume your duties before I hear complaints from my staff about a missing judge when court is supposed to start."

Mac turns on her heel and exits his office fuming. Apparently, she got her point across, but she has no idea why the General was laughing at her. She thinks to herself, 'I will never understand men!'

* * *

Harm makes the mistake of leaving his office to refresh both his and Bud's cups of coffee. He nearly runs headfirst into Mac because she is too busy staring at the floor to notice where she is going. He reaches out to steady her, forgetting the mug in his hand, which shatters on the floor when he drops it. "Mac, I'm so sorry. Are you okay?"

She stares at him, thankful for his concern, but she is still irritated. Although now, she is more angry with the General than her husband. She curtly replies, "I'm fine, Harm. We'll talk later. As the General reminded me, I'm going to be late for court." She clomps her heels on each stair heading up to the next floor, leaving Harm slightly befuddled.

PO Quinn comes running in with a broom and a dustpan, "I'll clean the mess up for you, Sir. It sounds like you are having a bad enough morning."

Harm replies, "That I am, Petty Officer." Ensuring that his wife is out of earshot, Harm adds, "Let me give you a piece of advice. It is less dangerous to wrestle an alligator than it is to argue with a Marine."

Neither of them happens to notice the General standing there until he clears his throat and questions, "Is that true Captain? I didn't realize you had ever wrestled at all, let alone with alligators."

Harm mutters, "Umm. It was a suggestion by Admiral Chegwidden at one point."

The General smiles, "AJ was well known for some appropriate phrases. However, I will forgive your faux pas since I would venture to say that you were referring to your wife instead of me."

Harm nods vehemently, "Yes, Sir."

The General replies, "Good. I wouldn't advise talking to her for just a little while yet. I don't think her discussion with me improved her disposition any, but she might reconsider the dog. I thought my wife was terrible with the hormones, but you are definitely going to have a rocky road for the next few months."

The General walks off towards the breakroom whistling the Marine Corps Hymn as he thinks to himself, 'The Colonel is definitely a force to be reckoned with. Harm's got bigger balls than I do!'


	37. Four Plus Two Plus Three Equals Nine

Harm takes a deep breath and follows the General into the breakroom. Bud still needs a refreshed cup of java, and he needs a brand-new mug himself. At least he didn't shatter one of his favorite ones. Harm steps to the side of the General and grabs one off the top shelf, where he keeps a hidden stash of cups in the back that only he can reach. He pulls down one that contains an image of the flight patch he worn on his shoulder from aboard his time on the Patrick Henry and sighs deeply.

The General raises his brow and questions, "Missing your flying days, Captain?"

Harm replies, "Actually, no Sir. I still fly in my Stearman, but I really have no desire to follow the family tradition of leaving widows and children behind. I will say that I do miss the smell of the jet fuel and the salty seas though."

Creswell shakes his head, "Only you Navy boys appreciate those smells. I prefer the scent of dirt and sweat. I'll see if I can get you out to a carrier when an investigation comes up. Let you spread your sea wings, so to speak. I have a feeling you might want to get out of the house for a little while over the next several months."

Harm auto replies, "Yes Sir, I mean No, Sir. While I would love to get out on a carrier, and maybe get away from the hormones for a bit, I want to stay rather close to home. Since Mac's pregnancy is automatically high-risk, I would prefer not to leave anything to chance."

Creswell pats him on the back, "You're braver that I give you credit for, Harm. Dodging MIGS is one thing, dodging a pregnant Marine's hormones is another altogether."

Harm groans, "I know."

Creswell smirks on his way out, ". I just wish you the best of luck, you're going to need it if this morning's display was any sign of what to expect for the future."

Harm fills both cups with piping hot java and heads back to his office. He hands Bud his, and takes a sip of his own grimacing, "Ugh! The General must have made this pot."

Bud asks, "What happened to your JAG mug, Sir?"

Harm chuckles, "Did you not hear all the commotion outside?"

Bud sheepishly replies, "Uh no. I was engrossed in the file, what happened?"

Harm chuckles, "I ran into an irate woman running late for court. As I tried to steady her, my cup decided to take a freefall."

Bud frowns, "I take it the Colonel is still angry?"

Harm nods, "Yeah. I might decide to risk asking her to lunch, that is, after I check in with her yeoman for her current disposition."

Switching topics, Bud inquires, "So, did I hear correctly that you and the Colonel are considering getting a dog?"

Harm answers, "Yeah, it was the General's suggestion. He figured that having a dog around would help tire Matthew and Trisha out so that we would have a little more energy to focus on the triplets when they get here."

Bud responds, "Wow! I wish someone had mentioned that to me when Harriet and I were expecting the twins. You know how AJ was when Jimmy first came along, he ran away because he felt neglected. When the twins first got here, neither one of the boys were happy. We could have used something to help keep them distracted. Even now, it might not be a bad idea to get a dog. It would be nice for all of them to have a furry friend to grow up with."

Harm laughs, "A piece of advice. Just don't tell Harriet that the General suggested it. I have a feeling if your wife comes in here to give him a piece of her mind right after mine did that you and I might have new orders to Iceland."

Bud shaking the thought of the frigid country away, grins, "Oh that's okay, Sir, I'll just tell her that you suggested it."

Harm rolls his eyes, "Remember you still have to work with me too!"

Bud mumbles, "Understood, Sir. So, what kind of dog do you think you will get?"

Harm shrugs his shoulders, "I'm really not sure. I was thinking maybe a Labrador or maybe an Australian Shephard. Somehow, I have a feeling Mac will want to go with an English Bulldog since it's the Marine Corps mascot. I'm already living with enough Marine wannabes; I don't need the dog against me too."

Bud chuckles, "Well there is one sure fire way to talk her out of a bulldog."

Harm quirks his brow quizzically, "What's that?"

Bud says, "Simple. Remind her that in a few months she'll be walking, or waddling to be more precise, exactly like the dog."

Harm's eyes go wide as saucers, "Are you trying to get me shot?"

Bud shakes his head in the negative, "No, Sir."

Harm exclaims, "If I suggest that, I'll be dead, Mac will be in jail for murder, and you and Harriet will end up raising nine kids."

Bud lets that sink in for a minute, "On second thought, Sir, maybe you shouldn't suggest that."

Harm grins, "Oh I see, it's fine if I'm gone just as long as you aren't stuck with raising my kids."

Bud somberly replies, "No I don't want anything to happen to you or the Colonel. But god forbid something did, I think Harriet might kill me too if we have to raise nine children. I don't think she signed up for a baseball team."

Harm shakes his head, "Let's not remind our wives about that at all. We probably should have thought about the repercussions of being godparents to all of each other's children."

Bud replies, "True, but if something ever did happen to Harriet and I, there isn't anyone I would trust raising our kids more than you and the Colonel."

Harm smiles, "Thanks Bud. Mac and I feel the same way about you and Harriet. Now, we'd better get to work before the General comes asking for a status update."

Shifting his focus back to work related matters, Bud answers in the affirmative "Aye, Aye, Sir."


End file.
